The Good Plain Cook by Bethan Roberts

   The Good Plain Cook by Bethan Roberts 

AVAILABLE: November 2009

Life is lived through the simple small tasks of daily life...


the making of a cup of tea,


peeling potatoes,


going for a walk...


The Good Plain Cook  demonstrates author, Bethan Roberts',  talent for telling a story simply and in eloquent detail through the experiences of a young "plain cook" named Kitty. Roberts creates mood and scene with just the perfect balance of words that set cinematic views for the reader without burdening the text. She has crafted a convincing quietude that magnifies the eccentric lifestyle of "champagne socialist" Ellen Steinberg, her Marxist poet lover, Mr. Crane, and Steinberg's lonely daughter, Geenie. This little group of "bohemians" reside in a  cottage out in the English countryside during the summer of 1936.


This story is loosely based on the life of art collector Peggy Guggenheim.


I found the book to be an enjoyable read... just like a good home cooked meal.

(4 out of 5 stars)

The Good Plain Cook available at You Are What You Read Book Store

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Bethan Roberts

The Angelic Way by Rami Shapiro

There are times when I am so grateful to receive advanced reading copies of soon to be published books.

This is one of those times.

The Angelic Way: Angels through the Ages and Their Meaning for Us by Rami Shapiro is a scholarly work that is highly readable and quite thought provoking.

How fascinating was this work?

Let's put it this way... I wrote 18 pages of notes to myself about topics from Shapiro's text. I am not parting with my copy of this book, no way.

Rabbi Rami Shapiro defines angels as a metaphor (or symbol) used to describe the human ability to transecend our "ego-centered mind" into a "God centered conciousness".

Being that I am a Catholic reader I could not accept Shapiro's stance that angels exist only as myth.
Yet, not once, did I take issue with his thesis. In the end the emphasis is placed upon each individual's ability to let go of the self (ego) and embrace joining with the Divine.

Shapiro's approach is ecumenical or what you maycall interfaith. He opens the doors for addressing the history of angels from a wealth of knowledge from many religious perspectives. His work is firmly rooted in the study of mythology with reference to the powerful work of Joseph Campbell.

Unlike the overflowing miasma on book store shelves of pop culture angels compartmentalized into simplistic explanations used to serve  authors '  needs to appease a reading population that wants quick fix spirituality...

Shapiro's text is a fine work of scholarship that appeals to the reader's intellect.  The Angelic Way: Angels through the Ages and Their Meaning for Us  is written with such clarity that it encompasses complex concepts that are accessible to the unitiated theological reader.

And with that being said, I am going to hit my notes and start exploring the new worlds that author, Shapiro< has introduced to this avid reader.

ENJOY!

(4 out of 5 stars)

The Angelic Way available at You Are What You Read Book Store

Publication Date: 10/30/09



Learn More:

AUTHOR'S BLOG:   Rabbi Rami

Scarpetta by Patricia Cornwell

Last of my 2009 summer reads.
(boohoo... back to more serious reading now)

I really liked this one. Lots of loose ends tied up from the last Scarpetta story, but...

an editor! An editor! This story needs someone to chop away at least 25% of this book. Annoying nuisances pop up like repetitious sentences, the criminal deluge of adverbs... and rehashing the plot progress too much.

What happens to editors when they have to deal with best selling authors? Actors need their directors and authors need their editors to pull in the reins and do all that fancy schmancy editorial stuff.

Sigh.

Of course, who am I to critique when I have never written a book?

Well...

I've read a ton of them including Patricia Cornwell's novels.

I'll be eagerly awaiting the next in the Scarpetta series.

Please, please make this avid reader want to give Dr. Kay a four star review.

(3 out of 5 stars)

Scarpetta available at You Are What You Read Book Store

LEARN MORE:

Official Patricia Cornwell Site http://www.patriciacornwell.com/

From the Dust Returned: A Novel by Ray Bradbury

You have to read From the Dust Returned: A Novel by Ray Bradbury with the Charles Addams cover artwork.

Bradbury had planned to do collaborative work with the Addams family artist, but the plan never came completely to fruition. You have here the author who has inspired countless science fiction authors, and the artist whose work has obviously influenced artists like Timothy Burton.

Bradbury shares in his Afterword that the characters from this book, the Elliot family, started as imaginary characters when he was 7 years old. Character portraits are based on loving memories of his own family and special Halloween celebrations devised by his Aunt Neva. The love for these happy memories and family shine through the writing.


I found that reading this book made me reminiscent of the days in my youth where I could curl up with a book on an endless summer day without any interruptions or responsibilities hanging over my head. The language is beautiful, and the plot is simple.

The only criticism I can offer is that the chapters are obviously "taped together" works of short stories ranging from 1946 to 2000. The throughline chapters are not always satisfying.

(4 out of 5 stars)

Five stars for the poetry of Bradbury's eloquence, and two stars for the continuity.

From the Dust Returned available at You Are What You Read Book Store

LEARN MORE:

Ray Bradbury Official Site ( http://www.raybradbury.com/ )

Mayo Clinic Guide to Living with a Spinal Cord Injury

Patients with spinal cord injuries (SCI) are now having shortened hospital stays. The result of this circumstance is less time in hospital for patient education. The Mayo Clinic Guide to Living with a Spinal Cord Injury: Moving Ahead with Your Life is an outstanding educational resource for patient and family use that offers the extensive information needed to help a SCI patient on the path to recovery.

Anyone who has had a major health crisis with permanently life altering effects can attest to the mind numbing shock that occurs immediately after the doctor shares the news. Patients are deluged with information in an effort to start the healing process promptly.

Speaking from my personal experience from the day I was newly diagonsed with systemic lupus... I can vividly recall all the overwhelming changes occurring with no time for my mind to catch up. I was seeing numerous specialists, being prescribed medications, having to make abrupt lifestyle changes and being recommended books to purchase, websites to visit, handouts to read... everything getting lost in a clutters of papers because I was too confused by the immediate situation.

I wish I had had a manual like Mayo Clinic Guide to Living with a Spinal Cord Injury: Moving Ahead with Your Life . This manual takes all those informational handouts and gathers them together in a highly readable and organized manner. The emphasis for SCI treatment is patient AND family involvement for a successful rehabilitation. The handbook is written to include the patient's caregivers (who usually are family). The writing is concise and addresses topics that I would think many patients would either be too embarrassed to discuss... or wouldn't even had thought to ask questions about.

Beyond the educational value for patient and family, this book would definitely be beneficial as an instruction manual medical social workers. The book outlines a multitude of social and emotional challenges that a SCI patient and family will face. As a social worker I would definitely use this book in counseling sessions as a springboard for discussion.

(4 out of 5 stars)

Mayo Clinic Guide to Living with a Spinal Cord Injury is available at LBL Book Store

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

Mayo Clinic

http://www.mayoclinic.org/spinal-cord-injury-rehabilitation/

Paralyzed Veterans of America http://www.pva.org/site/PageServer

A GENTLE RAIN by Deborah Smith

I am not prone to reading love stories. I like surprises and unconventional characters and the such that I usually find lacking in the "romance" formulas of pop fiction.

But, now I must jump off of my reading snob soap box and admit that GENTLE RAIN by Deborah Smith was a pleasant literary visit. I found the story to be predictable, but comforting in its predictability.

I think what captured my attention was the author's inclusion of two major adult characters who have developmental disabilities. The characters were treated with dignity and the book successfully addressed the rights of adults who have intellectual challenges.

Will I read more love popular fiction love stories?

Probably not, but if I see Deborah Smith's name on the cover...

I think I will pick up the book and take a leisurely time out from the world.




( 3 out of 5 stars)


A Gentle Rain available at You Are What You Read Book Store

GILEAD: A Novel by Marilynne Robinson

GILEAD by Marilynne Robinson is a Pulitzer Prize (2005) winning work of fiction. The story is told through a collection of letters written by an elderly dying minister for the benefit of his young child.

I think I need to read this book again.

Why?

Because I had several false starts which caused me to lose track of the characters and the story line. This problem was due to my own inattentiveness...

I like to read before dozing off.

This book deserves the reader's total undivided attention, therefore I will will pay GILEAD its due.

GILEAD is brief, but contains so many jewels that to nod off mid-sentence is to break the thread that binds the jewels together.

The language is resplendent in its simplicity... and through this simplicity much wisdom is shared. My copy is dogeared willy nilly... take your time reading this one, because there is so much in here that you are going to want to recall.

I wish I had the true gifts of a literary critic, but I do not...

so I'd like to share my favorite segments from GILEAD:

4The narrator, Revernd John Ames, speaks of his father's and grandfather's legacies as ministers. The grandfather returns home from war with an eye missing. The grandfather's response to the family's surprise:

"I am confident that I will find great blessing in it..." (p. 36)

A response that the grandfather chose to continue to use throughout his life in response to disagreeable events.

4 As the elderly Reverend John Ames reflects on his life, he writes to his seven year old son:

"How I wish you could have known me in my strength." (p. 94)

How many of us older parents wish for the same thing?

4 "That is how life goes - we send our children into the wilderness. Some of them on the day they are born, it seems, for all the help we can give them. Some of them seem to be a kind of wilderness unto themselves. But, there must be angels there, too, and springs of water. Even that wilderness, the very habitation of jackals, is the Lord's." (p. 119)

4 Reflecting on sorrow and human suffering:

"I heard a man say once that Christians worship sorrow. That is by no means true.But, we do believe there is a sacred mystery in it, it's fair to say that... I believe there is dignity in sorrow simply because it is God's good pleasure that there should be. He is forever raising up those who are brought low. This does not mean that it is ever right to cause suffering or to seek it out when it can be avoided, and serves no good in practical purpose. To value suffering in itself can be dangerous and strange, so I want to be very clear about this. It simply means that God takes the side of sufferers against those who afflict them." (p. 137)

4 I think the world would be in a lot better shape if we could heed the following words:

"I have heard any number of fine sermons in my life, and I have known any number of deep souls. I am well aware that people find fault, but it seems to be presumptuous to judge the authenticity of anyone's religion, except one's own. And that is also presumptuous." (pp. 172-173)


(4 out of 5 stars)


Gilead available at You Are What You Read Book Store

LINKS:

Author Interview:

TITLE: INTERVIEW . Marilynne Robinson . March 18, 2005 PBS
LINK: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/week829/interview.html
NOTE: This has got to be one of the best author interviews I have read in ages. Absolutely outstanding and you need not have read GILEAD in order to understand the interview.

Author Audio Interview:

TITLE: Writer Marilynne Robinson on 'Gilead' by Terry Gross (NPR)

LINK: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4490635

Reading Group Guide:

LINK: http://www.readinggroupguides.com/guides3/gilead1.asp

Pulitzer Prizes: Fiction:

LINK: http://www.pulitzer.org/bycat/Fiction

CLEANING UP by Tania Glyde

DATE OF RELEASE: JANUARY 2009

Cleaning Up: How I Gave Up Drinking and Lived is the frankly written personal story of author, Tania Glyde's, journey away from living with alcohol.

Actually, Tania Glyde gave up much more than alcohol. She had been a “poly drug” user, but admits in a radio interview that the book title would have just been too long to have included the list of substances she had used.

Alcohol is THE gateway drug according to Tania Glyde.

I happen to strongly agree with her. But, although her story is interesting, I could not relate.

I set aside the book and ruminated. I actually kept thinking about Glyde’s story weeks after having set it aside. I have known so many people who have struggled with alcohol. There was something nibbling about… something in her book that I missed.

I passed her book along to someone who expressed interest. The response he had to
Cleaning Up: How I Gave Up Drinking and Lived was visceral. Through his eyes Glyde’s story took on a much deeper meaning. I returned to her pages and found myself reading and re-reading whole sections.

With the driest of humor, Glyde offers tips on how to get on with giving up drinking even though society is not going to help you out with that. Glyde’s wit offers the reader friendly ways to navigate through the protestations of friends who will refuse to accept the “I’m not drinking” change. There is no self-pity here, just the truth and nothing but the painful raw truth.

Tania Glyde’s personal battle with alcohol is the same one faced by uncountable numbers of people who are “social drinkers” living in a society that encourages overindulgence. For American readers, one must be aware that binge drinking is a major problem in the United Kingdom (Alcohol Problems Costing Britain 3.3 Billion (pounds) ). Her book also addresses the “trivialization” of depression and alcoholism. Her experiences of being refused treatment are gut wrenching.

I would strongly recommend this book to any one who has asked themselves if they are a problem drinker. This book is also perfect for those on the road of sobriety who haven’t quite found their “niche” (i.e.: Alcoholics Anonymous, Support Groups, etc.). And, as I have learned through the reading of this book if you know someone who is struggling with alcohol and/or other drugs, Tania Glyde’s story may be a stepping stone to being able to discuss these challenges more openly.


(3 out of 5 stars)

Cleaning Up available at You Are What You Read Book Store

FROM THE COVER:

Imagine not drinking a bottle of wine before making a pass; not moving in like a starving cat when someone is at the bar; not apologizing for something you don’t remember doing. Once upon a time, Tania Glyde couldn’t imagine living any other way, and to the outside world she seemed fine – despite the constant hangover from drink and drugs and the bottle of vodka stashed in her handbag.

At the end of her 23 year love affair, Tania Glyde remembers her inner white wine witch and questions our powerful sense of entitlement to drink until we fall over: Cleaning Up describes why women drink, how to stop and what life after alcohol is really like.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Tania Glyde is an author and journalist. She has written two novels to date, Clever Girl and Junk DNA. Her short stories appeared in the Disco 2000 and Vox 'n' Roll anthologies. She was Time Out’s sex columnist for two years.


ADDITIONAL LINKS

Tania Glyde

Drunk for a decade: Successful novelist Tania Glyde reveals her secret battle with alcoholism Mail Online

avr from Meryl Zegarek Public Relations, Inc.

HOW (NOT) TO BE A DOMESTIC GODDESS by Deborah Ross

Award winning columnist, Deborah Ross, has a club, and I desperately want to be a member.
She calls her organization the NDGC (GB)… that is the Non-Domestic Goddess Club of Great Britain.






Assuming that you can get motivated enough to attend a meeting (a true Non-Domestic Goddess will shiver at this point at the thought of a meeting), you will be welcomed with a cup of Nescafe’ made from tap water and a store bought cake (if anyone bothered to buy one).






Fortunately for U.S. readers, Ms. Ross’ delightful anti-Martha Stewart approach to home making has crossed the shores and is now available:






How Not to be a Domestic Goddess: ...always go to bed on an argument






One could say that the Non-Domestic Goddess motto is encompassed in one simple statement, “Nature abhors a vacuum and so do we.”






Hey, I’m all for that! And apparently there are plenty of other women who agree.









I brought my copy of How not to be a Domestic Goddess to the doctor’s waiting room and had to fight my way out of a horde of Non-Domestic Goddess wannabes trying to pry the book from my hands.






Well, okay that really didn’t happen.






No one who aspires to be a true Non-Domestic Goddess would dare to make such a concentrated effort to obtain a “How To’ book on anything…






But, the office nurse thought the title was funny and told me so.






And I agreed with her.









The title is great and the book is even better.






ENJOY!




(2 out of 5 stars)



How (Not) To Be a Domestic Goddess available at You Are What You Read Book Store

THE HIEROPHANT OF 100th STREET by Cullen Dorn

First of all…

An Heirophant is an interpreter of sacred mysteries.

Yes, I had to use a dictionary to understand the title, even before I had cracked open the book.

The Hierophant of 100th Street by Cullen Dorn is a metaphysical themed story of life on the streets of East Harlem; somewhat resonant of Dito Montiel’s autobiographical film A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints sans the vulgarity.


Cullen Dorn creates outstanding sentence snapshots that condense scene and mood of life in East Harlem. He also has a good ear for dialogue and sound. These talents are the cornerstone of a gifted short story writer and poet.

Unfortunately, the author’s attempt to synthesize the metaphysical plot line with the story of two brothers coming of age in the hardened streets of Harlem in novel form does not work. The plot line is choppy. Scene shifts happen abruptly and introduce too many characters without enough transition for the reader to keep pace. There was simply not enough back story for the reader who is uninitiated in all things New Age.

I felt that the work was too ambitious for a first novel. This probably is true for the majority of authors in regards to the first novel. I felt that this work needed more time to germinate and required tighter editing.

Cullen Dorn definitely is an author worth noting. He has a fascinating life story (check the links provided below) and he is talented. He is not an author for the casual reader, but someone who appreciates the beauty of words.

I hope to see more work from him.


The Hierophant of 100th Street available at You Are What You Read Book Store




CULLEN DORN (author) on AuthorsDen

CULLEN DORN MySpace.com

formerly: INFINITUDE

RELATED TOPICS OF INTEREST

Dr. Richard Ireland