Book
Reviews November 2017
The Intellectual Devotional: American History
By David S. Kidder and Noah D. Oppenheim
The Intellectual Devotional: American History was our
favorite book in the Intellectual Devotional series by David S. Kidder and Noah
D. Oppenheim. The reading took a little
over a year, beginning in September 2016 and ending in November 2017. My husband and I have read the entire series
together, a page or two at a time. While
not entirely accurate, the American History devotional gave us a lot to talk
about. It put much of the political
trauma of 2016-17 into perspective.
Reading through the devotional, it’s apparent that our country has had
some pretty bad leaders and a lot of political turmoil in the past. Since it was written in 2007, the book is not
entirely up to date. Despite that, we
found the book to be a great shared reading that led to some very interesting
discussions. I’d definitely recommend
the entire Intellectual Devotional series, particularly for shared reading
experiences.
The Art Forger
By B. D. Shapiro
The Art Forger by B. D. Shapiro is one
of a series of audiobooks that I’ve recently listened to about forged and/or
stolen paintings. The Art Forger
is based on an actual robbery that took place at the Isabella Stewart Gardener
Museum in Boston in 1990. As of 2017,
none of the thirteen paintings that were stolen during that robbery have been
recovered. The plot of The Art Forger
involves one of the stolen paintings. The
story was somewhat less interesting than the actual robbery. I kept hoping that the main character,
Claire, would quit making stupid decisions.
She didn’t and I guess that’s what drove the story. She and Markel, an art dealer, were a
disaster in the making right from the start.
It was a mildly engaging mystery.
Many of the twists were apparent from the beginning. The narration was good. Overall, I liked it… definitely worth three
stars.
Driving Miss Norma
By Tim Bauerschmidt and Ramie Liddle
I loved Driving Miss Norma! After a diagnosis of terminal cancer, Miss
Norma decided to forego medical treatment and hit the road with her son, Tim
Bauerschmidt, and his wife, Ramie Liddle.
I really enjoyed following their yearlong journey on Facebook. The book was a perfect follow-up to the
Facebook journal posted by Liddle. Driving Miss Norma expands the story
of their ‘hospice on wheels’. Both the
Facebook journal and Driving Miss Norma are written with humor and
sensitivity. The story could have been
sad and tearful, but Miss Norma and her adult children were an
inspiration. I highly recommend Driving
Miss Norma to those looking for positive and uplifting end of life stories.
Being Mortal
By Atun Gawande
I was surprised to see Being Mortal by Atun Gawande on my
eighty-eight year old mother-in-law’s table.
She offered it to us, so we took it home. It was very sobering to read while dealing
with end-of-life issues with my mother-in-law.
There are many examples of different end of life situations, some
positive… some not. I felt the most
important message was to have discussions and to listen. It wasn’t the most pleasant book that I’ve
read recently, but perhaps was the most significant.
A Piece of the World
By Christina Baker Kline
I’ve listened to quite a few audiobooks about the art world recently,
and A Piece of the World by Christina Baker Kline is one of the
best. It was a very engaging and
believable story. The characterization
was great. The descriptions of Maine and
the house made me feel like I really knew the place. I’m familiar with Andrew Wyeth and his work,
so I had that as background knowledge.
I’m sure it helped. Polly Stone’s
narration was great. A Piece of the
World is definitely a good listen!
On Writing
By Stephen King
Even though I’ve never read a Stephen King book or watched a movie
adaptation, I loved On Writing! I
bought the book quite a few years ago, when I was taking a writing course. Recently, I finished all of the books under
my bed and found that On Writing was the only one left. I was too lazy to get up and find another, so
On Writing became the choice of the day. The book was part memoir, part
King’s philosophy on writing. The
philosophy sections could easily be applied to any creative area. A few of my favorite ideas involved beginning
with a situation and ending by cutting to the essential. I especially liked his
story about his son’s drumming career and how that relates to passion in
creativity. King told his story with
feeling and much humor. I’m hoping that
my writing will improve by following his advice and am avoiding adverbs and
inverted sentences. On writing
was awesome!!!
Viola in Reel Life
By Adriana Trigiani
Viola in Reel Life was a
sweet, young adult story by one of my favorite authors, Adriana Trigiani. It is the story of Viola, a young teen from
Brooklyn, NY spending her freshman year in high school at a midwestern boarding
school. Written in 2009, the book is
filled with experiences that would be relevant to a teen in 2017. Viola and her roommates are strong female
characters. The story was engaging. It was a good read for an adult, as
well.
Neverwhere
By Neil Gaiman
Narrated by Neil Gaiman
Neverwhere is one of Gaiman’s darker
novels. I found myself thinking of Fantastic
Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl as I listened to Neverwhere. Both stories involve an underground and
aboveground world and evil bad guys.
However, Gaiman’s ‘bad guys’ were much, much more evil and Neverwhere
was definitely not for children. The
best way to experience a Neil Gaiman book is by listening to Gaiman read the
book himself. I’m thankful that most of
his books and narrations are readily available as audio books. Listening to Neverwhere was classic
Neil Gaiman. I definitely loved it!
