A LESSON IN SECRETS

A Lesson in Secrets by Jacqueline Winspear - This nice little mystery takes place in London and Cambridge in 1932. Maisie Dobbs is the detective with connections to Scotland Yard, and she is sent on an undercover mission to a college whose mission is to promote peace in the aftermath of WWI. It actually got better as I read, and I'm almost tempted to read some of the previous Maisie Dobbs books, but I don't think I will. I have a feeling this is a filler story between her more dramatic missions set against the strife of war. Enjoyable and recommended if this is your genre.

BORN GUILTY

Born Guilty - Children of Nazi Families by Peter Sichrovsky - In the 1980s Peter Sichrovsky interviewed children of Nazis, who were born at the end of or after World War II. These interviews take the form of first person accounts answering questions about how the child felt when learning that their parent was a Nazi or SS officer. These young adults carried much guilt for the roles their parents played in the war. In most cases they had no idea what their parents had done, since in almost every case, the parent claimed a minor role as part of the SS machine, and denied their role in the Holocaust. So many of the children asked themselves why they were born, considering their parents' cruelty, facism, racism and denial. At the end of the book, Sichrovsky gives a possible explanation for the parents' views.

FIFTY SHADES OF GREY

Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James - Of course I read it. And guess what, I've read it before. Oh...not this exact book, but many like it, because this is what women read in the 1980s and it was called the romance novel. Fabio was on the cover, and in between the pages was an innocent yet sassy young girl and the older well built hunk who beguiles and deflowers her. They constantly misunderstand each other and each others' motives and the formulaic story advances. I must say that this modern take with the 9 1/2 Weeks theme is a fun read, and just good enough that I've reserved the next book in the trilogy. I mean after all, I have to find out what happens, right? By the way, this is not a book to be taken seriously. Either enjoy it or put it down, but please don't tell me it's serious. All right then! On to Fifty Shades Darker.

MOONLIGHT KINGDOM

Moonlight Kingdom - Excellent Excellent Excellent! I loved this crazy little story about a strange little island and quirky people and starcrossed runaways in 1965. It's charming and nice and watchable and just a little different with that Wes Anderson twist. Enjoy this charming story.

21 JUMP STREET

21 Jump Street - This is a great movie! Funny and action packed, the cast is full of comedic actors you know and love, and Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum come together as the perfect disparate guy couple. They play twenty something police academy graduates who are sent back to high school under cover, in order to "infiltrate the dealers, find the supplier". Channing plays the guy who was the cool kid in high school, while Jonah was the nerd. When they get back to high school in modern times, things have changed, especially the definition of cool. This is a funny and watchable movie on lots of levels. The story and humor are clever and sharp, and yet there's this goofy action movie thread running through it. It's got loads of swears and inappropriate stuff, and it's really good.

EVEN SILENCE HAS AN END

Even Silence Has An End by Ingrid Betancourt - This is the first person account of a French Columbian woman who was running for president in Columbia, and was kidnapped by uneducated Guerillas belonging to a revolutionary group called FARC, supported by Columbian drug lords who kept her hostage for six years. It is a harrowing tale of human survival and determination. Ingrid's spirit is indomitable. She was completely obsessed by the idea that she had to get home to her children. She made escape attempts, she survived sickness, she survived cruelty, she survived animosity from guards and fellow captives alike, she survived hunger, she survived being chained up, and still she prevailed, and just as she was losing hope, after six years, the story of her rescue is amazing. This story will stay with me for a long time, and there is as much to the story between the lines as there is in the literal words that Ingrid chooses to use as she describes her relationships with the many other hostages.

ALBERT NOBBS

Albert Nobbs - Every time I saw a preview of this Glenn Close movie about a woman who has always lived as a man, something about it called to me. Now that I've seen it, I can recommend that you avoid the siren call, unless it's free and you have nothing else compelling to watch and you enjoy the English Lord of the Manor movie genre. The story is good enough, and even though I fell asleep in the middle of the movie, I woke up and was able to stay awake until the end. Glenn Close might have had her eyes done with botox for all the emotion she lets Albert express. Expressionless unblinking eyes plus no conversation with anyone save a "yes ma'am", do not make for a watchable movie. The rest of the characters do oblige, however, the movie is titled Albert Nobbs, so we want a little more out of Albert than we get; even when Albert does get animated for a couple of weird seconds, it's creepy. And unless it happened while I was asleep, we never learn how Albert got to be that way. (Although come to think of it, they must have explained that at some point, right?) But I don't care; for me, it wasn't worth the two dollars rental, and it's only worth free if you like the English movies.

A CHILDHOOD: THE BIOGRAPHY OF A PLACE

A Childhood: The Biography of a Place by Harry Crews - I learned of this author upon reading his obituary a few months ago. This book was known to be one of his best, written about his hard childhood on a hardscrabble Georgia farm. Harry was an impressionable little boy and his storytelling is descriptive and leaves no doubt as to the crazy goings-on of that depression era life. When I was young I loved reading William Saroyan's accounts of growing up Armenian in California, and likewise I enjoyed reading about Harry's life growing up southern in Georgia. This and his other works are described as "rough" "raw" and "freakish" by other reviewers, but I read this only as honest and bigger than life as seen through the eyes of a child and the distance of memory. Anyone who thinks too hard and dwells with one foot in the past will recognize a fellow thinker/dweller and enjoy his story. Harry Crews was a prolific author, and I'm looking forward to exploring some of his other works.

JEFF WHO LIVES AT HOME

Jeff Who Lives at Home - It's all in the title. Jeff is a 30 year old guy who lives in his mother's basement. He believes in signs, and on this particular day, two phone calls get him moving out of the house. There is something charming and watchable about this movie. Jeff's innocent charm, his brother's belief in himself, his mom's desire for a little more in her life, and his sister-in-law's frustrations. I really enjoyed it, but realized that not everyone will appreciate the nuanced happenings. (there's a sentence for you!)

OK, it's relatively early in the day for me, and I've already finished the newspaper. My plan is to check out the sidewalk sale in Evanston to get some exercise and see if I can find a summer purse. Then I plan to come home and really make inroads on the dining room table and the whole Auntie Kaye picture project. Two scrapbooks are completed, and I have three or four to go. The third is laid out, so all I have to do is attach the photos and make and attach (or adhese as my friend Denise says) the labels and a few sticker enhancements. YES! I will do this today and be accountable to my blog. Wish me luck. I need it. I'm so prone to distraction lately that it's not even funny.

THE WEDDING GIFT

The Wedding Gift by Marlen Suyapa Bodden - The Wedding Gift is so good that I've completely forgotten the other good books that I've read these past few weeks. You can run out and get it now, and don't even finish reading my review! I started it yesterday, and basically didn't put it down or do anything else until I finished it. Just for the record, this week my calendar is completely blank, so I decided that today would be a vacation day. Took my book to the beach and read to my heart's content. This is the story about a slave girl named Sarah in the 1850s and her family and owners. I didn't read the back cover before reading the book, and I suggest not reading it, because it basically tells the entire story in a paragraph, and what fun is that? If you've ever liked any of the books I've recommended, then I recommend that you read this one next. Something is happening in this story until the very last page.

SEARCHING FOR TINA TURNER

Searching For Tina Turner by Jacqueline E. Luckett - I couldn't resist reading Jacqueline's first novel after enjoying Passing Love last week. At 55 years old, Lena has it all, loving successful husband, two children, beautiful home, but she's in a funk. And that's all I'm going to tell you because you've got to read it yourself to find out what happens and why Tina Turner's name is in the title. I loved Lena and all the women in this book, as well as the story and the way it's written. It speaks to the woman who feels trapped in a great life, and it's a fairy tale about what she can make happen if she puts her mind to it. I love that she and her friends are in their fifties and going strong. I hope Jacqueline E. Luckett continues to write these great stories about strong women who embrace life and the world around them.

SO LONG, SEE YOU TOMORROW

So Long, See You Tomorrow by William Maxwell - I get my book recommendations from the strangest places. This one came from a guy that my friend Michelle found on a dating website. They were on their first getting to know you emails, and he mentioned that he liked to read, and had recently read and enjoyed some book that I'd loved, and this one. So Long, See You Tomorrow is written in the first person by a man looking back to specific events that happened in his childhood and that throughout his life formed his memories of home and growing up. It's thoughtful and analytical and I'm not sure why I liked it. Maybe because we've all had experiences similar to those he describes, and we've also wondered whether the course of our lives would have been different had we acted another way at pivotal moments. It can be read as a simple story, or with a great deal of depth, and perhaps it was written that way. It was good, and I'm going to check in with Michelle to see if she went out with that guy, and if so, to find out what else he's been reading.

THE SINGLES * MAGIC MIKE

The Singles by Meredith Goldstein - The perfect easy beach read. It's been too hot to go to the beach, so I read this fun little book-ready-to-be-made-into-a-chick-flick in two nights. It's a charming vacation from serious and engrossing novels. Not to say that you might not become engrossed in the lives of these five people who have RSVPd to a wedding as singles rather than with their "plus 1s". The bride is a bit put out by the odd number of guests on her seating chart, but those guests turn out to be the most interesting people at the party.

Magic Mike - I saw this movie with bead group last Thursday afternoon.....Susan, Sue, Wendy, Michelle and I. Michelle hosted us on this 100+ degree day and we had wonderful salads and Michelle's fudgy brownies, and I made and wore some new big earrings that are now my favorites. Then over to Old Orchard for the movie. We sat front and center for the show....exactly where none of us would ever sit in a real strip club! And not only would Kathy never go to a real strip club, but she didn't even want to see the movie. But for Kathy, and the other squeamish types out there, I can tell you that it's funny, it has good dancing, and there is something about the acting and characters that makes you pull for them. As he grows older, Matthew McConaghy is like a parody of himself; the role of Dallas was made for him. The other two guys are darling and easy on the eyes, and the story was good. Who knew?
(Thank you Susan)

AMERICAN SNIPER * SKIPPY & SUPER SAD TRUE

American Sniper The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S Military History by Chris Kyle - Here's a first hand story about the war in Iraq, told by the Navy SEAL who has killed the most enemies. It's a straightforward, well written and detailed account of his life and the impact of war on he and his family. He writes about his training to be a Navy SEAL, the cooperation between the different armed forces, and how various missions were carried out during his four deployments. It's easy to put off reading because it's not a wonderful fictional story about a magical time and place. Instead it's real life and the title is off-putting for many readers. However, you will not be sorry you read this. Right now, in this world, Americans are losing their lives for our country. Chris isn't a reporter looking for an angle. He was one of the highest elite military men, telling the truth from the inside.

Skippy Dies and Super Sad True Love Story - I got into a book discussion with someone, and they said I had to read Skippy Dies. I tried, I really did. It's about a boarding school in Ireland, and Skippy dies right away in the first page or so. Then it goes on to other boys and the instructors, and it goes on and on and on. It went on so much that I decided to bag it. Went to the end, read that, confirmed that I was happy not to have put any more time into it, and picked up Super Sad True Love Story, which I couldn't remember reading or not. Like Skippy, I brought this one home, gave it a go, and said no. This time I read the last chapters, and once again confirmed that it was not for me. Here's hoping the next book on my nightstand is readable.