Like US Magazine in hardback. After watching the deliciously trashy and scandalous Mommie Dearest, I did a little research on Joan and realized that I was living in the wrong era - imagine that. I can't believe I missed such a great bit of scandal in old Hollywood. Lacklustre research, shakey conclusions and lots of off-the-record interviews with unnamed sources. But an intriguing read nonetheless. 
Julie Andrews is like Royalty to me. Chalk it up to the accent or her amazing backlog of playbill listings, but the woman is amazing. My Dad had a friend who worked on Broadway for years and he once told the story of a long walk home in the rain when a limousine pulled up. It was Julie Andrews' limousine and she was starring in the stage production of The Sound of Music. Her memoir evokes many more similar images of kindness and affability from early childhood to today. This took a little getting used to as she writes just the way she would speak. I had to ignore some of the grammatical inconsistencies that come with conversation and don't always translate well into writing.
Fabulous - and not just because it came out at the same time as the less than scholarly book "Pledged" by Alexandra Robbins and immediately proved superior. Finally some historic validity to a seemingly dated institution that has so much to give. Figure that one out...Using the archives of Kappa Alpha Theta, Turk explores the history of women's fraternities (sororities) and sheds light on why they're still viable for women today. While it should be a required read for women considering membership, it could also prove helpful to University administrators who seem to be constantly pondering whether or not Greek letter organizations are necessary on today's campuses.
When you have no life, it's easy to get caught up in the lives of characters you read about or watch on tv or in the movies. Typically I find that I'm either mildly interested in a story or entirely obsessed. This falls into the entirely obsessed category. Not quite like a movie where I have memorized every line, but I have recommended this dozens of times and talk about it as much as I talk about March. If I grew up near Niagara Falls and my father was a pharmacist, this could very well be my biography. Precocious, hyper and delusional childhood in a nutshell! I read it when it first came out in 2000 and then again with a book club in 2006. Maybe someday I'll get over it, but until then, please read this book!]]>
Anyone who has traveled in the United States will enjoy this book. I take that back, if you've ever spent time with multiple generations - traveling or not - you'll enjoy this book. I've loaned my copy three times and have purchased for several others! The foul-mouthed, wine guzzling Grandmother and her gentle, sober and chatty husband were my favorites. Hysterical, sad, heartfelt, fabulous.]]>
I thought this read like a movie (just like the back says) and recommended it to my Mom. She's from Iowa and seems to love historic tales from the Midwest. She couldn't finish it because of all the scientific talk on the weather and the conditions of the dust bowl. As a historian, I love a good back story. Then again, Mom also hated the Red Tent.]]>
The minister at my church is preaching on this and so far I love it's message. Bass talks about how it's possible for each of us to travel on our own faith journey using directions other than those laid out by organized religion. What a novel idea! ]]>
I listened to this on my way home for the holidays. It was entertaining and interesting. He appealed to my old school conservatism without alienating the liberalism I've come to embrace in the last 7 years. Lots of little "ah ha" and "ohhh..." moments that I wanted to remember to mention to other people, but of course forgot most of them the minute I finished the last cd. Not as good as Andy Rooney, but not too bad. ]]>
Brilliant and amazing. Similar to other tales of "revisionist history"...sort of. The story is told from the viewpoint of March - Marmee's husband and the father of their "Little Women." It gives background to his role in the Civil War and like McGuire's tell-all fairy tales, it makes you want to read the original inspiration. It's the companion book to Little Women that you always wanted - but wouldn't understand until you were beyond childhood. Using Louisa May Alcott's personal letters and papers for primary research, Brooks channels Alcott throughout the book and seems to have found her voice! 
The genius of this book was that I really felt like I was living a dis-contentious life in a quiet seaside town in the middle of winter. However, I should add that I'm not a big fan of visiting towns in their off-season - whether it be a pier in the winter or a college campus in the summer. It's just creepy. So it's no surprise this wasn't my favorite. I could not pay attention throughout this book and could barely participate in the discussion during book club. Ah well, c'est la vie. ]]>