Deborah Finnamore
I will definitely read this book again. And maybe a third time after that. Much to be gleaned from this book for writers who aspire to be as good a writer as Lott is (he's a master) and for readers who appreciate good writing.
This is not a dust-gathering coffee table book. It is exactly as Harry Lee Poe describes it in the opening lines of chapter one. “This book is not an ordinary book. It is both a picture book and a storybook. It tells all about a place and the friends who lived there.”
I bought this book and read it in one sitting. In 171 pages Poe invites you into the intimate friendships between C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien and the other Inklings. You meet not the stalwart historical figures but the men who come to dinner.
The photographer knows how to go beyond mere documentation. It's like you are there as opposed to looking at photographs. Stunning work!
Includes many references to the works published by the Inklings, some of which I had never heard. Excellent work for further research.
The appendix is a cool surprise, making the book even more useful...as if it needed it.
Good plot. Interesting characters. But at a couple of points I found myself suddenly out of the story and searching back to earlier pages to clarify something confusing. I still recommend reading the story if nothing else but to experience the surprise. And I'll leave it at that.
If you're nervous about flying, perhaps avoid this story but if you simply cannot keep yourself from a good story, then by all means, read this one. It does what every short story should do. It's focused and fast-paced with a complex yet winsome character at the helm. Though it was an overall satisfying read, and one worth the time to read, I would have liked to experience more suspense and be surprised at the outcome. I can't say more about that without giving things away so I'll just say if you like short stories, read this one.
This book commands a response rather than a review. As a newcomer to the appreciation of the monarchy, I tread lightly as I cannot imagine the experiences recorded in the pages of this book. Some I knew, many I didn't. The reader's companion that stayed with me throughout the nearly 400 pages was the overwhelming sense of the vast difference between perception and reality and how often one is mistaken for the other. And the resulting fallout. I suppose in one sense as with any public role one puts oneself out there for the private sector to judge. But the readiness of people to judge without charity as the first response is difficult to read about page after page. There was much of that in the life of Diana and ultimately in the lives of her sons as we're all aware these days. This is a heartbreaking book to read. That said, I did sense a particular personal appreciation of Diana by Patterson and Mooney. Without that, I don't think I could have finished this book.
Parents, don't let your kid's dreams of stardom carry them away to Nashville without reading this book first. Having previously lived in Nashville for fifteen years, I found a familiar tone within its pages. Frankly, it is one I miss dearly as there's no place like Nashville. Everyone you know or meet wants to be a singer/songwriter, knows one, lives with one, works for one, or has managed to become one of the few who earn their living at it. It's a tight-knit, warm and welcoming, albeit suspicious of strangers looking to strike it rich kind of community. Rose's experiences in this story reflect reality due to Dolly's strength as a storyteller and no doubt her personal experience of many years of paying dues before breaking into the business. I don't know her, don't judge me, nor am I a country music fan. But I purchased this book because I appreciate the universal story of working hard to earn what you get and not quitting until you get it. Both Dolly and James have this story in common. (I recently read James' book “James Patterson: The Stories of My Life.” It's excellent.)
I started this book yesterday and finished it today because I couldn't put it down. That said, I've rated it four stars because while it reflects everything that Patterson fans love about his writing style, in a few spots I did find myself ahead of the details, and not really needing some of those lines in order to arrive where they were leading. About four chapters in I found the solid footing of the story, and only a couple of times after the midpoint I experienced a few too many details that I didn't feel like I would miss if I skipped. I heartily recommend this book whether you appreciate country music or not.
If you would name James Patterson as someone with whom you would love an hour just to pick their brain about life, stop reading this review and buy the book. This is an up close and personal account of a man whose family was not part of the aristocracy. Quite the opposite, they were poor. Not Holiday Inn versus Marriott or Ruth's Chris poor, but not always knowing where their needs would be met kind of poor. Yet, Patterson tells the story that grit and determination, sometimes doggedly hard work, and consistency win the day. He doesn't say it's easy. Just possible.
I love the transparency with which he writes. His stories are personal, heart-wrenching, funny, heart-warming, and you get the sense, like Patterson himself, no nonsense. All told with the consistent tone that you find when you hear him doing interviews to promote his books. He embodies the mantra, what you see is what you get. And so does this book. It's an excellent, easy, addictively compelling read that will leave you with the desire to be a better person after you've finished it.
Magpie Lane is one of those books I couldn't put down once I began reading. I literally spent an entire Saturday in the ancient, haunting city of Oxford. (Time well spent. I've been to Oxford. Lucy captured it perfectly! Made me long to be there again.) It was refreshing to meet an imperfectly mysterious, relatable family who faces some harsh realities. In the end... wait, sorry. No spoilers! Oh, but it's so good! Magpie Lane delivers the experience readers wish for every time they pick up a book. I'll be rereading this one but for now I'm off to read her book that just released: Windmill Hill
Next to a gripping mystery, I feel like I also sat down to a delicious literary meal. Lucy's characters are real. Clearly defined. Their perspectives draw you along at a good pace. You never tire of it. If anything you're so intrigued that you sometimes want to get to the crux of the mystery faster. Expertly done.
Note: Goodreads has an incorrect number of pages. It's 354.
I enjoyed this book very much. Delightful picture of life in Paris. Funny, real. There were editorial misses but overall the book demonstrates its point very well. I will read it again.
It's pretty difficult to write a surprising review of anything Grisham has written because all of the good has been said about him in myriad ways. I recently found myself on Amelia Island when the release of his latest, Camino Ghosts, arrived in bookstores. I visited Story & Song, a local bookstore in Fernandina Beach, and picked it up, along with the previous two, Camino Island and Camino Winds. I was happy to experience his mastery of the “beach book” vibe. His descriptions of the beach, dunes, bookstores, coffee shops all made me wish that I were back there again. He really knows how to bring an area to life in a book. I could hardly put it down. Toward the end there were a few pages where I felt like the revelation and interactions of some B and C characters lost me a bit and I found myself skimming as opposed to hanging on every word. Still, that only lasted for a few pages and then I was back into it. Loved the ending. And as is Grisham's way, it's not at all what you think.
Fun. Heartbreaking. True picture of life in a small town in the Old South. It's one of those books I likely won't read again because I'll remember it so vividly.
Sometimes you pick up a book that grabs you and you can't get away from it. Maybe that says more about you than the book, but in this case its “both and.” Let me begin by admitting that I love Nashville. Lived there for 15 years. It is home to me. So when I read that this book is dedicated to Nashville, and each essay begins by telling you the place (a.k.a., coffee shop) where Annie F. Downs wrote it, well...I just had to read further. I wasn't really thinking that I need to be brave. Though since I can tend to be fearful, I didn't think it was a bad idea to consider reading it.
Downs and I not only have Nashville in common but there's two more things. She's known for getting lost. Me? All I know how to do is follow the blue ball on the maps app. Where it leads I go. In the recent case of using a not-to-be-named maps app made by one of the world's foremost companies that makes smart phones, I went way off the beaten path. And, she mentions flying to Minneapolis. My second home. At this point I was hooked. People who live in Nashville, and love Nashville are special people. Nashville is remarkably different than any other city I've lived in or visited.
Annie's vulnerability in this book is endearing. Her voice witty and personality winsome. She writes like she speaks. (From viewing her YouTube channel.) Approachable. You can tell that just beneath her poise is a funny, witty person waiting to burst into a good time. Her calling is to tell young women that God made them on purpose and that they are unique, and to encourage them to be brave. (Hence the title of this book.) The essays are short and fast-paced. Her voice is real. Teens today will be drawn to it. Just reading the first chapter of the book makes you want to get up and do something!
I love that she's not encouraging us to believe in ourselves. She hasn't bought in to the Hollywood lie that you can be whatever you dream you can be. Yet, even so, there were a few places where it felt like some new age philosophies made brief appearances in the text. I was confused in places as to whether she was using the word courage interchangeably with faith. And it felt like her focus often centered on encouraging the reader that they are better “selves” than they give themselves credit for being. I believe that we do need to believe in ourselves but only to the degree that we see ourselves properly in relationship to who God is. If we have a clear understanding of who God is, we will have a proper understanding of ourselves. And that cannot be found in Sunday School, at a church retreat, a college campus ministry or in traveling the world. The only place that we can go to find a proper view of ourselves is the Word of God. Let's All Be Brave does contain stories that refer to Scripture. Downs refers to quiet times. She gives testimony of prayer and listening to the voice of God, and her fearful obedience yet I did close the back cover wishing that she had directed me more clearly and more often to the One who controls every molecule of the universe. Perhaps her intention in these essays was to highlight the way God uses people and circumstances to direct us, and He does. I just wished I would have come away with a stronger leading that while its true that He uses circumstances and people, the primary way that He leads us is through reading and studying the Word of God. Through His Word - the Bible - our Heavenly Father gives us the faith that we need to do what we are called to do. Yes, we do need to be brave in the sense that we exercise childlike faith knowing that God the Holy Spirit has the ability to communicate clearly to us what He wants us to do, and He gives us the faith to do it. It doesn't come from inside of us. It comes from outside of us.
Still, I did enjoy reading this book.
When you review a book written by a profusely successful author, it's tempting to say that reading it gives you the classic experience. But while I would agree that this new Grisham work does do that, I found I most appreciated the consistency of one of his classics coupled with the wildly unexpected. I enjoyed “seeing” Mitch and Abby again because I loved those characters in The Firm. And when I first understood he would write the continuation of their story, I wondered about it. I was concerned it would be the same kind of expected sequel. But I had no reason to be concerned. Grisham not only delivered that wonderfully consistent tone he struck in the first book, but he built on and stretched Mitch and Abby's story and experiences to new boundaries in unfamiliar territory. It was such a win because Mitch and Abby are consistently people to whom we easily relate which creates a wonderfully unexpected rollercoaster ride by the time he is done. I think if he wanted to, he left himself plenty of room to write yet another book about Mitch and Abby. This could be a series.