No comments about Climbing the Stairs.

No comments about A Fine Balance, Part One (10 Audio Cassettes) and Part Two (7 Audio Cassettes).

5 comments about Fatal Forecast: An Incredible True Tale of Disaster and Survival at Sea, Library Edition.

1. Reading this book brought back memories... of reading The Perfect Storm.
   
   Obviously differing in the details, it's the same story, told in much the same way.



2. The Georges Bank lies about 120 miles east of Cape Cod. It is no place to be in a small boat; especially when the weather turns bad. Wind-driven waves building from the fetch of the Atlantic collide with the shallows beyond the continental shelf and can build to frightening proportions. And weather in the month of November on the Georges Bank can be extreme. Ordinarily, automated buoy data provide the National Weather Service with information that enables relatively accurate forcasting. But in November 1980 the National Data Center's Georges Bank Buoy, located 170 nM east of Hyannis, MA, was not functioning. It had not been for some time. With inadequate data, the National Weather Service issued a benign forecast. Based on this forecast, four deep sea lobster boats headed for the Georges Bank. They did not expect a killer storm packing 100 knot winds and 50-60 foot seas. One boat pitch-poled; it's lone survivor spent 50 frightening and misearable hours in a rubber raft before rescue. Another boat badly damaged by a rogue wave and leaking badly fought on and eventually limped back to port. Brave men and women of the U.S Coastguard, in spite of fatique and grave danger to themselves, doggedly attempted to rescue the crews of these vessels. Fatal Forecast is a story of survival, duty and triumph of the human spirit. The book is well-written and grabs you from the Prologue and does not let go. In fact, I read this book at a single sitting. I could not put it down. When I got to the end I read the Epilogue and even the author's notes. I did not want it to end.



3. Probably my favorite catastrophe book yet! Very well written, making it so hard to put down once you start reading. I got this for Christmas and finished it within 3 days! Tougias not only rendered an awesome account of a real life dramatic fight for survival but also relayed vividly the other events that occurred in the lives of the men and families affected by the disaster at sea. A must read for those who enjoy seeing man triumph over the most trying adventure.



4. Well written, gripping account of tragedy at sea. Worth reading if you like the "disaster book" genre, but not quite as good as The Perfect Storm.



5. If you liked "The Perfect Storm," you'll love "Fatal Forecast."
   
   Michael J. Tougias' book is a gripping page-turner about fisherman fighting for their lives amid a severe storm off the New England coast.
   
   Tougias' taut storytelling puts the reader in the middle of the action. Like the best survival stories, you can feel yourself in the characters' place, trying to figure what to do next.
   
   I also like that Tougias includes related stories of fishing boat disasters (and near-disasters).
   
   I do have one small complaint. This book, like many of this type, includes a batch of pictures in the middle. I suppose it's cheaper to print the photos altogether like this rather than insert them at the appropriate place in the story. But in this case, if you look at the pictures (and what reader wouldn't?), some of them give away the ending of the book.
   
   That said, it's still a great story. Allow yourself plenty of time when you pick up "Fatal Forecast" -- it's hard to put down.

No comments about Chronicles of Wasted Time, Chronicle 1: The Green Stick.

No comments about Elvis - Conversations with the King.

No comments about The Last Lion: Visions of Glory Part 1 of 2.

5 comments about Old Friends (Bookcassette(r) Edition).

1. This book chronicles a year in the lives of the residents of an ordinary American nursing home. From 1989-1991, Kidder spent much time getting to know the residents of nursing home on the outskirts of Northampton, Massachusetts. In this book, he describes some of the characters he met there, and some of the friends he got to know well. He describes some of the special events that occurred in the nursing home that year, but also relates much of the ordinary daily occurrences in nursing home life, from the morning bowel movement survey, to watching a demented resident try to pick the flowers in the carpet, to chatting with the guys in the breakfast club supervising the dining room set-up.
   
   Although Kidder tries to present a cross-section of nursing home residents, from the former vaudeville performer, to the bank vice president, many of his tales focus on the drama and antics of two roommates, Lou and Joe. The pace of the book can be agonizingly slow in places, as we wait for something to happen. The pacing is one way for Kidder to capture the sense of the place, a place where every day is more or less like the next--"Beautiful day," as one resident writes in her journal every morning. It's an eye-opening experience to read this book, and come to understand the heroic effort it takes to present a smiling face to the world when trapped in a body wracked by aches and pains while stuck in an institution away from family and friends, most often against one's wishes.



2. I had just signed up for long-term nursing care insurance, a very expensive commitment. I had a number of books I had been waiting to read, and I picked up OLD FRIENDS, thinking I would read a piece of nostalgia.
   
   I was wrong. I picked up and read enthusiastically a book about nursing homes. Tracy Kidder's book makes clear what my long-term insurance is all about. No brochures could have described what he does here.
   
   I became enmeshed in the lives of the residents. I watched them become "nudnicks." I overheard their conversations about life and death. I, too, looked forward to Lou's rambling memories. I worried about Joe's toe and if he'd lose it.
   
   Both of my parents died suddenly, and as a result I had no experience with long-term care. I say "God bless" to all the workers in nursing homes and to Tracy Kidder who made this entire experience so vivid.
   
   I now feel prepared myself if I should ever need this care.
   
   Larry Rochelle, author of GULF GHOST, BLUE ICE and GHOSTLY EMBERS: VISIONS OF TOLEDO



3. 
   After spending a year at Linda Manor, a nursing home in Massachusetts, Pulitzer Prize winning author Tracy Kidder offers no generalized discourse on the problems of aging in America, but rather a touching story of friendship, reconciliation, and peace.
   
   Joe Torchio is 72-years-old, a former probation officer, and has suffered a stroke. Bitterly railing against the losses that have beset him in life, the death of a son, the birth of a retarded daughter, Joe has forsaken his Catholic faith.
   
   At 92 years of age, Lou Freed is blind yet resolutely curious about everything. He is a Jew who is not terribly religious but is sometimes given to pondering theological questions.
   
   The pairing of this unlikely duo as roommates might bode bickering and discontent. Not so in Kidder's hands - we find a gradually blooming friendship which enables both men to live in their new environment and face limited futures with equanimity, courage, and grace.
   
   This is not just Lou and Joe's story, it may be your story or mine. Of course, it is a tale of old age and approaching death. It is also a toast to life.
   
   - Gail Cooke



4. This is a beautifully meandering story of two nursing home residents, their year spent in a growing friendship within the walls of "Linda Manor." And it's more than that-- In this story, Tracy Kidder involves a whole cast of residents, interacting in ways that paint a more creatively human picture of a nursing home than most would imagine is the case. They make up a community in and of themselves, even planning and taking part in a play put on for other residents, staff, & families. It's a place of friendships, laughs, worries, dread concerns, but mostly of friendships and the efforts of the elderly characters in reaching out to their fellow residents during the last chapters of their lives. I appreciated the realism Kidder offers in this book, clearly based on his own one-year experience at the actual "Linda Manor" in Massachusetts.



5. This reads like eloquent fiction, but is in truth the story of Tracy's father. He doesn't say which character his father is, and he doesn't insert himself into the story. But what a wonderful, heart-bending story it is. At all times the sadness of the situation is eclipsed by the bravery and courage of people without hope; people who do the best they can, and it is more than enough. For any of us who will grow old, which is most of us, this is a must read.

2 comments about The HIRED MAN'S CHRISTMAS, THE.

1. What a wonderful story filled with warm memories of a time past. It will remain a favorite on my bookshelf. However, the temptation is to pass it on to others to enjoy. Not only does the author display great sensitivity in his story telling but he also has the unique ability to take the reader on the journey with him. I hope this is just the beginning for this author. By the way, the sketches done by his daughter that are peppered throughout the book are delightful.



2. This very touching and insightful account of a boys' youthful memories touched many sensitive cords. Although the boys' relationship was bad with his Dad he had a wonderful relationship with his Grandfather. It reminded me so much of my own Childhood, growing up in Dryden (Gee Hill) area and going to school in Marathon, NY. I didn't know any of these people but feel like I know them now and knew many others just like them from the area. I thourghly enjoyed this book

No comments about Letters from a Diplomat (BBC Radio Collection).

No comments about Sam Houston.