No comments about Mysteries of the Unknown: Dreams and Dreaming (Audio Adaptations of the Time Life Book Series).

5 comments about Facing the Wind: A True Story of Tragedy and Reconciliation.

1. This book was personally intersting since I was a classmate of Robert Rowe, the oldest child at South Shore HS in Brooklyn. He was very quiet but very nice and I sat next to him in math in high school. Then one day he did not come to school and there was only very brief news coverage of the fact his father killed the family. Nobody talked about it at home or at school. It wasn't like it is today when they bring in grief counselors etc. Locally, this was treated as a non-event. This was a horrible thing for us to have to find out--that his father killed him with a bat when he was in bed. How awful. The book names people I know and the psychiatrist in the book, Dr. D., treated lots of people I know so the whole book took me back in time.
   
   However, this guy should have been killed! I cannot believe he got away with this! If this would have happened today he never would have been able to get himself out the way he did. He never deserved a second chance, not after what he did. Back in the 70's life was very stressful with all sorts of financial stress on many people and the recession or whatever it was when lots of people lost their jobs. It was hard on my family as well but at least none of us killed each other



2. 
   
   
   I thought Julie Salamon did an excellent job writing this book. I felt she was very objective, so objective in fact that I kept wondering why she wrote this book. It was almost like she didn't have an opinion about Bob Rowe and what he did; murdered his entire family in cold blood. For me it made me wonder...how should we judge people and how should we punish people? And how can we ever know what another person is truly capable of or what is really in their heart? Should someone like Bob Rowe ever be released? Personally I don't think someone should be set free after serving a minimal sentence when they have murdered their entire family. This book led me to another, as books always do, called The Sociopath Next Door also very interesting.



3. "Facing the Wind" tells us of the life of Bob Rowe, an attorney with a pretty and spirited Irish wife, Mary, and three children. Their middle child, Christopher, was exposed to Rubella in the womb and was born severely handicapped, both physically and mentally. The author gives us an interesting background on these "Rubella babies" and the disabilities that resulted. The disabilities varied, but nearly all were blind. We learn about the mothers and children who knew Mary and Bob, and all were amazed at what an active role Bob took in Christopher's life, helping equally along with Mary to provide the child with as normal a life as possible.
   
   All seemed to be going well when one night, Bob decided to bludgeon his family to death with a baseball bat. First was Bobby, Jr., the eldest son, then Christopher and Jenny (their adopted daughter), and finally Mary, after he called her home from work to show her a surprise. He had her stand in the living room with her eyes closed, and then killed her, too. Afterwards, he turned the gas on in the oven and tried to kill himself by lining the door with plastic wrap, which one can assume Bob thought would help him inhale more gas.
   
   Bob is found not guilty by reason of insanity because of the stress of his job and of raising a handicapped child. He is placed in a mental institution for several years. After he gets out, he meeds Colleen, a much younger woman - she is 19, I believe, and Bob is in his late 40's. Eventually, they are married and have a daughter. Colleen is aware of his past. The second half of the book, the slower half, is about their life together and Bob trying to get reinstated to the bar.
   
   The author's writing flows nicely, and she provides letters Colleen wrote to Bob professing her love to him. She does not include any pictures, which was disappointing, but maybe Colleen Rowe asked her not to. I thought the author was very sympathetic to the Rowe side. I personally doubt his "innocence" because he came across as arrogant to me, and unremorseful. As a mother of two myself, I also doubt Colleen's stability if she thought it was a good idea to not only marry a man who bludgeoned his family to death, but to also have a child with him. Of course, you can draw your own conclusions on that.
   
   All in all, I recommend this book. It's a good read.



4. My biggest problem with this book is that the author tries to make it more socially meaningful than it is by telling it as the story of a man "overwhelmed" by the responsibilities of caring for a severely handicapped child -- hence a person we can all relate to on some level.
   
   But NOBODY in the story actually says that Bob Rowe was overwhelmed! Bob coped quite well for many years until his mother died. Then he began to have hallucinations that his mother was telling him to kill his WIFE (not his handicapped son.) As a result he was hospitalized and medicated. Unsurprisingly, the medication prevented him from functioning as a cracker-jack lawyer, as he had previously, and he began to lose jobs. He developed an obsession with his dwindling finances. Eventually he decided to stop taking his medicine. At that point, he was both out of a job and psychotic. BOB says that the precipitating cause of his murdering his family was fear that he could no longer provide for them.
   
   One of the prosecutors interviewed for this book says exactly the same thing. He says it's a "male ego" thing which is not at all uncommon in men (but very rare in women.) The man feels that he is a failure, that he can no longer take care of his family, ergo he has to kill himself, ergo he has to kill all of them too, because how could they survive without him?
   
   In all of the court proceedings NOBODY says that Bob Rowe killed his family because he was overwhelmed by caring for a handicapped child. In fact, it's pointed out that, of his three children, he killed his handicapped son LAST. Also, that he had many many occasions to kill his handicapped son in a way which would have avoid all suspicion. If the handicapped son were the big issue in his life, why kill the whole family? Why not kill the son secretly (he took the kid sailing regularly and could easily have staged a sailing accident)?
   
   I think the author is trying to manipulate the reader into feeling "there but for the Grace of God go I" (i.e., "perhaps I too would crack under similar unbearable strain") but this is just not supported by the facts -- unless the reader is concerned that they might suddenly become psychotic for no discernable reason.
   
   Among many diagnoses given to Bob Rowe was "borderline personality disorder" and this is clearly correct in that he NEVER seems to have grasped the enormity of what he did. After he "recovered" (pretty much immediately in the sense of starting to perk right up and take care of his own interests) his big sorrow was the great injustice done to HIM in that he was unfairly blamed for something he wasn't responsible for. Here's the luckiest murderer in the history of the world -- three years in a mental institution, gets out, gets a new family, is surrounded by love and forgiveness -- and we're told that he's "devastated" that he can't get his law degree back! HE'S the victim!
   
   If any one of us had a seizure disorder and we were supposed to be taking medicine for it, and the medicine was interferring with our ability to work, so we decided to stop taking the medicine, and then, while driving, we had a seizure and killed our whole family -- how would we be affected for the rest of our lives? Overwhelming despair? Guilt? Sorrow? (Or would we dedicate our lives to fighting the injustice of having our driver's license taken away?) But Bob whacks in the heads of four people with a baseball bat (fully aware of what he's doing and why -- only "psychotic" in the sense that he's making such a horrifically bad decision) and spends the rest of his life feeling sorry for himself!
   
   BTW -- unlike others, I found the BEST part of this book to be the stories about the moms with handicapped kids. Frankly, as per above, I thought this really didn't have a whole lot to do with the murders, so actually it was pretty irrelevant to the book. But it was very interersting on its own -- in a way that the story of this murderer was not.



5. i got into the 7th chapter of this book and i did'nt find it the least bit interesting what so ever.so i put it down,maybe it would have gotten better but as far as i got i was board out of my mind.

2 comments about The Real James Herriot: The Authorized Biography.

1. This is a most enjoyable book allowing a glimpse into the life of one of my favorite authors. It was interesting to learn about the situations that molded the life of James Herriot (Alf Wight).



2. -James Herriot was a country animal doctor who recanted his life into stories, which became All Creatures Great and Small and other books and audios. His son, Jim Wight, upon his father's death, composed a tribute to a man we all thought we knew in The Real James Herriot. The abridged audio version is narrated by TV's James Herriot, actor Christopher Timothy. His familiar tramping of the characters and Herriot's words makes him the perfect choice to read this veneration.

1 comments about White Coolies: Library Edition (Isis).

1. I was given this book to read when it was first published - 1954 - when I was 12 years old. I am now 58!

   The courage, humour, resourcefulness and sheer mental tenacity displayed by this group of women astounded me - even as a 12 year old. I seemed to bond with them. I wept when prisoners were abused or died and laughed myself silly when they pulled funny pranks on their loathesome Japanese guards.

   I am an avid reader but there has never been another book which has left such an impression on me. As a high school student of English, I chose "White Coolies" as a book review assignment. I remember scoring very highly.

   I am keen to obtain a copy of White Coolies, particularly as one of the wonderful women featured in it, Vivien Statham (Bullwinkel) passed away in Perth, Western Australia, this week.

No comments about The Lost Days of Agatha Christie.

5 comments about Theodore Roosevelt (The American Presidents).

1. Want to know more about American presidents? The American Presidents series is one approach. This volume in the series focuses on the old Rough Rider himself, Theodore Roosevelt. First, a confession. I have read 2 of the 3 volume set by Edmund Morris. Obviously, I have an interest in depth (the second volume alone features 555 pages of text). But most people would welcome a shorter--but still good--view of TR. And this volume will meet the needs of such people.
   
   Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. has a standard Introduction to each volume. With respect to TR, some of his observations are apposite. On page xv, he says: "Great presidents possess, or are possessed by, a vision of an ideal America." Surely, that describes Roosevelt. At another point, Schlesinger says that (Page xv): "To succeed, presidents must not only have a port to seek but they must convince Congress and the electorate that it is a port worth seeking." Both observations seem to fit TR, where they did not fit Warren Harding or Chester Arthur or Rutherford Hayes or Benjamin Harrison or. . . .
   
   The book begins by describing TR's rather well off childhood. Some problems. His beloved father dies prematurely. He had physical ailments. To address the latter, he exercised and even spent time in the Wild West, building himself up physically.
   
   His public life began in rather exotic positions, such as president of New York City's Board of Police Commissioners. He was named as Assistant Secretary of the Navy after William McKinley's victory in the presidential campaign of 1896. After the Maine's destruction and the road to war with Spain, he resigned and, as we all know, became head of a group of troops named "The Rough Riders." After estimable service in Cuba, he returned as a war hero. The governorship of New York and then nomination as vice president to William McKinley (perhaps to get him out of New York?).
   
   He became an accidental president after McKinley's assassination. The book chronicles his views and actions as president, when he was known as a "trust buster" and as the advocate of a "Square Deal." He was known for many accomplishments (some of which might raise eyebrows), such as the construction of the Panama Canal (as some Senator said years later, "We stole it fair and square!"). He left the presidency, followed by his handpicked successor, William Howard Taft. Then, the tale of his disillusionment with Taft, his Bull Moose campaign, his disgust with Woodrow Wilson is depicted.
   
   Auchincloss is a fine writer, and this book reads well. For those who want a "quick and dirty" introduction to TR, this will fill the bill.



2. The short biographies that form the American Presidents series do an admirable job in capturing the heart of the accomplishments and characters of our country's leaders. Some of the volumes succeed further in offering, in addition to an introduction, challenging reassessments of their subject's place in history. Bunting's book on Grant and Diggins's study of John Adams are in this latter category. With a leader as complex and energetic as Theodore Roosevelt, (1858 - 1919), the task of a brief portrayal is daunting indeed. Louis Auchincloss has generally succeeded in offering a portrait of TR and his presidency that will serve for basic information. For a more complex and detailed view, the book should encourage the reader to explore further.
   
   The American composer Scott Joplin wrote a delightful ragtime called "The Strenuous Life" in honor of TR but with a hint of satire as well. The phrase aptly describes TR and his era. A sickly child born to great wealth, the twelve-year old TR took seriously his father's injunction to "make your body!" as well as his mind. TR became a dynamo, moving out west to become the owner of a cattle ranch in Dakota in the 1880s and leading the fabled charge of the Rough Riders up San Juan Hill in Cuba during the Spanish-American War. In the midst of a busy life, TR found time to write about 40 books, including his autobiography and innumerable letters.
   
   In his politics, TR developed a unique position as a Republican party regular and as a progressive. He served in the 1880s' as a New York State assemblyman and as Governor of New York, among other accomplishments, before being called to the vice-presidency. He became the 26th president upon the death of McKinley in 1901, and then was elected to a term of his own. TR famously declined to run for a second elected term, a decision he lived to regret.
   
   TR's presidency had many accomplishments, striking out in as many directions as the man himself. He was a trust-buster who believed in American capitalism, individualism and business. He was also a famous conservationist. In foreign policy, he was a mixture of calmness and bellicosity, acquiring the Panama Canal, expanding the Navy, and receiving the Nobel Peace Prize for settling a dispute between Russia and Japan.
   
   Following his term, TR took a lengthy safari as a big-game hunter in Africa and upon his return became disillusioned with the presidency of his chosen successor, William H. Taft. TR bolted the Republican party and, alas, took the progressives with him. The split in the GOP between its progressives and its conservatives has lasted to this day. The immediate result was the election of Woodrow Wilson to the presidency.
   
   Auchincloss tells the story of TR simply and well. But I came away from this book curious to know more. In particular, I would have liked to learn more about TR's writings, some of which are available in a two-volume set published by the Library of America. Auchincloss evidences a certain skepticism about TR, pointing out ways in which TR's America, as well as TR's values, differ from contemporary America and from the choices of many contemporary Americans. As explained by Auchincloss, these values, which seem closely interrelated, center upon TR's elevation of the worth of toughness -- "machismo", -- his sexual restraint and even prudery, and his views on the relationship between men and women, which today would commonly be regarded as sexist. I remain fascinated with TR's strength, vigor, and sense of purpose, combined with his high powers of intellect. His forcefulness and belief in our country, tempered as it usually was with prudence, still has much to teach us.
   
   Robin Friedman



3. A nice concise summary of the life of Teddy Roosevelt. Auchincloss does a good job of detailing the essentials of his life. Roosevelt was a Republican with a progressive bent. The author showed how his policies were often at odds with the pro business Republican party. However, TR managed to compromise and get a program through Congress that was progressive. He also used power overtly as in the Panama Crisis, even though it was for the good of the country and world.
   
   The American Presidents series are all nice reads. Although some presidents do not merit the full book, TR certainly deserves more space and attention. He was truly one of the better presidents as the author points out.



4. This book serves as a good introduction to Theodore Roosevelt to either satisfy or stimulate one's curiosity before indulging in a lengthier biography. This is a "short" bio, and not meant to be a treatise on T.R. The author was better with his Penguin Lives book on Woodrow Wilson, but he seemed to have more fun with Roosevelt.
   As a subject T.R. is especially enjoyable, but more for his forceful character than for any of his objective accomplishments (for which the author notes several, e.g., negotiating the peace between Japan and Russia, and his national conservationist orders, etc.).
   The author addresses Roosevelt's sense that his presidency was relatively unspectacular, and since war time presidents receive the most historical attention (e.g., leading to positive evaluations for Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt, but negative for Wilson due to his post war failures), Roosevelt felt himself cheated from his place of greatness due to being a peacetime president.
   As this author notes, many of T.R.'s beliefs had long lasting value (especially, I feel, his beliefs on the limitations of capitalism as spoken by a pro-business chief executive). Those who followed him, though, soon abandoned these attitudes. The reason for this seems to rest with T.R. He accomplished much emphasizing the forcefulness of his personality and took credit for improvements as being uniquely his. Since he can be the only T.R., his philosophy could not be transmitted to others. When out of office, he was no longer "T.R." and his so-called system collapsed as with a deck of cards. He was ultimately left a shell of his former self.
   What if Roosevelt had toned down some of his tendencies? Might he have extended his influence over the next administrations and the country? If so, might this have led to a different result in how America influenced the developing European disputes that resulted in the First World War? These are some of the questions that remained with me from reading this book.



5. This is the second volume in the new American Presidents series edited by Arthur M. Schlessinger, and like the first on James Madison, provides excellent, although brief insight into one of America's most fascinating characters. The prime focus of this book is on TR's presidential and post-presidential years. Limited space does not allow for anything more than a brief summary of Roosevelt's early life, which may actually be his most interesting period. Still there is enough to give the reader a basis for understanding Roosevelt's revolutionary power-expanding actions as President. Auchincloss does a wonderful job of filling this short volume with all of the important events of Roosevelt's life while keeping to a very enjoyable and readable style. It is a good introduction to Roosevelt and will leave you wanting to learn more.

5 comments about Fields and Pastures New: My First Year as a Country Vet.

1. This book relates some of McCormack's adventures as the new vet in a southern country town during the early 1960s. McCormack grew up on a farm in Tennessee. His college roommate, a pre-vet major, interested him in veterinary science. Once he earned his veterinary degree and had a few years of experience under his belt, he set off in search of a town where he could hang up his shingle with an independent veterinary practice. At the time, Butler, Alabama had no licensed vet, so it seemed like a reasonable place for a new vet to make a start. In this book, McCormack describes the characters he met, both human and bovine, during that first year in Butler.
   
   McCormack is a master storyteller. With his careful choice of words, he conveys the character of the place with all its color. While chatting with some locals at a general store, McCormack quipped he went into veterinary rather than human medicine because he didn't like dealing with people. But he tells us that this is absolutely not true-if there's one skill that a vet must have above all others, it's the ability to deal with people, to understand their needs and character. In this book, McCormack regales us with tales of how he came to learn this lesson.



2. I really enjoyed this book. It was well written and entertaining. I loved the Herriot stories so much, this is another great book about vet stories. It will definately be worth your time.



3. I own the hardback copy of this book...actually I have owned it for a few years now. It is one of those books that become a literary treasure in your bookcase. I was so hooked on this book when I first got it, I read it from cover to cover in one day...I just couldn't put it down!

   Dr. McCormack in the US can be likened to James Herriott of England. His stories of animals that he treated and the start of his career in the 1960's makes the reader feel they are right along side him assisting in whatever procedure needs to be done to his animal patient.

   I am a person of great compassion for animals and as a reader, I was truly appreciative that the love and compassion that Dr. McCormack has for his animal patients shines through to the reader's soul. I laughed with this book..I have cried with this book...I have pulled for the sick animal in this book...I have rooted Dr. McCormack through as he treated tough cases in this book.

   There are books about animals and then there are the special books about animals because the respect, compassion from the writer is there and the animal patients become real as one reads along the journey in the book.

   If you are a James Herriott fan or an animal lover who is a reader, I highly, and I stress highly, suggest getting this book and reading it!




4. My people are not from Choctaw County, but we're from "around there." This is not only a sympathetic and heartfelt account of a rural vet practice in the sixties; it's a very accurate look at the folks you were likely to meet then and there, both the good and the bad. I have met most of the folks he talks about, or at least their near relations. Dr. McCormack's extended meditation on the verbal mangling of his job description by his neighbors is alone worth the price of admission, although the account of his visit to the Governor's Mansion driving the "rounds vehicle" and a too-long-delayed boar cutting run it very close. Excellent book.



5. I really enjoyed this book. It had good detail, and you really felt like you were going on the rounds with Dr. McCormack. I have read it several times since I bought it, and it is hard to put down each time, even though I know the outcome!

   I enjoyed reading how tough it was to convert some of the farmers to the methods of modern veterinary medicine, and it was interesting to read the different methods the farmers had preferred to treat the illnesses in their livestock and pets until their was more modern help available.

5 comments about Reagan In His Own Voice.

1. If you admire, respect, or just fondly remember Ronald Reagan you'll enjoy these CDs. Through the short radio commentaries you'll feel like you've gotten to know the real Reagan.



2. This product is simply amazing. Ronald Regan was one of the best Presidents this country has ever had. These recordings are amazing. Many of the issues that he addressed in his radio announcements are still relevant to today! Decades later!!!
   
   This should silence the "nay sayers" about Regan's abilities and opinions. All these announcements were written by Regan himself between his term of Governor of CA and President. He clearly laid out his plan of defeating communism. It is amazing to hear how a "true" conservative thinks.
   
   Each section is set up and reviewed so that you know the actual context in which Regan was speaking.
   
   It was a true pleasure to hear Regan's views on Government, Freedom of Speech, and faith in the American people.
   
   This series is a must for anyone who doesn't understand what it means to be a conservative. I just wish our current President (George W) would listen and practice Regan's example of what it means to be a conservative.
   
   Ronald Regan knew how the world works, and the role the US Government should play in the lives not only US Citizens, but to the entire world.



3. I doesn't really matter if you're a dem or a rep, this is a voice that can speak to you if you're an american.
   
   No, I didn't agree with everything the Gipper said but I always listened.
   
   First rate audio. First rate documentary. First rate ideas.



4. No matter what your political affiliation is, there is no denying Ronald Reagan was one of the greatest speakers and leaders of our time. The collection of audio commentaries by the 40th president of the United States is an everlasting testimomy to the personality and opinions which reached out and captivated a nation. After listening to his warm voice and sharp wit,it soon becomes apparent how he could almost effortlessly attract and win most people over with his words. The collection of commentaries contained in this CD, were recorded from his radio days prior to becoming president and provide insight into some of the issues and concerns of the American public during the 1970's. Its such a great collection, that his voice, thoughts and charisma remain with you long after listening to the CD.



5. It was during the 2000 and 2004 elections that my father would often reflect upon the Reagan radio addresses of the late 70's, further convincing me that Reagan's greatest ideas were spread, not by text or television, but by radio, at first
   
   To my father, and to many others, Reagan's Presidency started with these radio addresses, that gave Reagan the greatest opportunities in expressing his greatest concerns for our country, and his best solutions towards them
   
   In turn, I was eager to hear some of these addresses, and I'm extremely thankful that scholars like Kiron Skinner have finally put them together
   
   In this Audio CD, you will find a cluster of many radio addresses ---- humorous, political, storytelling, etc ----- most of them focus upon the Soviet Union, and many spotlight exactly how Reagan presented his thesis against the "Evil Empire" ---- listening to them makes you wanna travel in a time machine and cast a vote for President Reagan
   
   They are also easy to listen too, as 95% of this audio CD is Reagan's addresses, and little of it is taken up by commentators or other authors --- the best part is that they take all of Reagan's best commentaries and play them through completely! No interruptions, and no quick takes --- just pure Reagan!
   
   And as always, Reagan's optimism and love of storytelling definitely comes through
   
   For me, I purchased this version off of the iTunes music store (iTMS), and loaded it onto my iPod, where I was able to listen to it during long drives over this last year ----- it made me feel like I was driving in the year of 1979, being convinced to vote for Reagan over Carter ---- I don't even know if President Reagan, himself, knew that his greatest immortalization would be within an Apple iPod???
   
   In turn, its a great set! My biggest appreciation goes to Kiron Skinner, a very accomplished scholar of African American heritage, and Hoover Institute Fellow, who has put together this great set
   
   My only criticism is that it is too short ----- even for 5 to 6 hours!!!! My deepest hopes are that Skinner considers a sequal
   
   Thank you all and happy listening!!!!

5 comments about Be Sweet: A Conditional Love Story.

1. This is a very intimate book written with a great deal of courage and self-questioning. Roy Blount Jr. lays this book out in a stream-of-consciousness style which makes for compelling reading. He keeps coming back to questioning the unsettling aspects of his relationship with his mother. Child abuse is an unjust and toxic experience for a child that creates chronic stress past childhood into adulthood; Blount does an outstanding job of showing this to be the case, in spite of his well-deserved great successes including development of character and wisdom.
   
   Nowadays, inappropriate communication/intimacy from parent to child is identified as enmeshment, a form of sexual-emotional child abuse. A mother who has experienced neglect and/or violated boundaries as a child can without compunction abuse her power with her own children demanding pity for all her life's woes and make them into her caretaker(s). Parents with less than sturdy personalities, possibly due to childhood damage, (esp. without treatment or at least acknowledgement of their inadequacies, awareness of the need to respect other's boundaries, etc.) can be invasive in a very unhealthy way and wholly inconsistent; there is no abiding gratitude for the caretaking by the child - unnatural caretaking and pity created by the needy parent in the plastic brain of a child that could have gone in infinite directions - at the root of it, created because of a sense of entitlement by the parent. Not surprisingly, self-absorbed parents also resent their children's growing autonomy and fear abandonment adding more inappropriate behavior as they grow away. Additionally, this type of parent is capable of projecting profound resentment and rage at their own children - redirected from their feelings about their childhood and/or their abuser. This is the complicated legacy of past abuse or mental instability morphing into other forms of less easily defined abuse that Blount writes about.
   
   His anger toward his mother's behavior was almost always overridden (with hesitation on several occasions he writes "I hate my mother") by pity for her, the curse of enmeshment abuse; his anger was fiercely directed at historical family members who may have abused his mother, but that history was shown to be unclear (perhaps even unlikely to the extent this mother dramatically described her purported abuse with relish to her own children) as well; in fact, the reader is left to wonder how much physical abuse actually took place of the mother when she was a child and whether it was mostly neglect and a personality which may have been unstable, maybe histrionic, and self-indulgence.
   
   It is always difficult to ascertain what is immaturity and narcissism versus what is damage done in childhood which impaired normal functioning and reactions - especially historically. This author seeks understanding of his mother, but solid facts, analyses, definitions and understanding are illusive. A lot of people are inadequate parents, in one way or another, avoiding the real work of "sucking it up" as an adult and not just passing on damage and incurring pain upon children which they have to deal with for a lifetime. This is where Roy Blount Jr. is, I believe, is passing along an important message with his story.
   
   There was, during the time period he is writing about -roughly the 1950s- a profound societal pity for women, which gave a greater sense of entitlement to women in the home behaving self-indulgently and feeling like it was "their time" and they were going to get "their due." (During this time, women would be on complete bedrest with full assistance of the baby for weeks after they gave birth to a child; nowadays they are discharged with the baby within in a day and back to full-time jobs in a week even if they are a single parent.)In addition, there was a lot of praise for women in any sort of community or church involvement. For some women this overwrought societal praise and pity fueled their narcissism and sense of entitlement that they could use the family however they wished. I haven't seen this documented but rather it is an observation. With women having more opportunity nowadays (and of course with birth control established), that deep societal pity is gone and - please forgive the generality here -it seems that there is less unquestioned inappropriate behavior, women behave more responsibily in the home. Women behaving as competently in professional jobs as men nowadays also has eliminated the idea that they were to be automatically pitied and protected because of their incredibly complex neurological and endocrine systems, (part of the physiological dialogue of the 50s). Also, the 50s were also a time where it was not uncommon for children to be berated for just being there as in "you damned kids"; a lot of parents felt entitled to resent and rage at their children. For the most part, children were not treated as individuals with rights during this time period; it was a parent-centered time. TV has changed a lot too as it brought models of appropriateness and questioning of behavior into homes; even passive viewers absorbed knowledge. Not surprisingly, a lot of parents were capable of behaving immaturely and selfishly, and nowadays we would define that as abuse and inadequate parenting.
   
   It is unarguable that on this mother's part there was a lack of the hard work of growing up, a lack of self discipline, a lack of respect for boundaries; in general, there was a lack of genuine empathy for what she was doing to those in the immediate family and seeking what she needed from her children instead of the other way around. Enmeshment takes energy from the child to parent; the child gets drained by and used for companionship, attention and love;in the process the child is abandoned.
   
   Blount's frankness about determining his main job in life to rid the family of its' multigenerational "legacy" of abuse was thoughtful and moving. It was a fairly raw account of a man (an extremely intelligent and articulate -well published- man in his mid-50s) still struggling with a form abuse less obvious but more likely to cripple him and his sister in relationships than a straightforward whack against the head, making them more likely to bring old resentments from childhood into adult relationships. He continues to detox from the chronic stress created by his childhood by going back and looking at what happened and seeks a way to deal with issues of injustice in some way besides resentment and recycling old anger.
   
   This idea that no matter what his successes were in this life that his main goal was to overcome the family legacy made for compelling reading. Writing it as he did, extensive humorous analyses typical of his other writing mixed with reflection upon successes and then intermittently coming back to disturbing elements of the parental -mother- relationship that could not be resolved, that there can never be closure to the experience of a toxic childhood, was just plain brilliant.



2. I was lucky enough to stumble across Roy Blount reading from this book in a Vermont bookstore. I bought it on the spot, telling him that it was the first one of his books that I had paid full price for. He thought this was pretty fun, the store employee sitting next to him didn't. This book is worth its full price.

   Be Sweet in no way sets out to "make fun of the mother-son relationship". I suppose because Blount is such an irreverent goof-ball on the radio and in print, it seems fair to have that preconception. However, Blount has always let us know that some things are sacred and after you get a short way into this book you realize that family is one of them. He desperately does not want to cast aspersions on his own mother's character, but he has to acknowledge that she did drive him to distraction throughout his life.

   There were several points in this book were Blount seems to be going off on a tangent. To be honest I began to wonder if he was just filling the space between the covers. Oh me of little faith! In the last third of the book I was progressively more amazed and impressed as I discovered that his seemingly unconnected threads were actually germane to the resolution of his mid-life psychic wrestling match with himself.

   Bill Bryson's recent A Walk In the Woods similarly surprised me. I don't expect journalists to write deeply personal prose. Roy Blount beats Bryson hands down as far as the psychological depths that are plumbed and illuminated. If the presentation of the psychological dimension of things bores you or insults your sense of decorum, then don't read this Roy Blount book. If you want to know what is going on in the head of middle aged white Southern guys of above average emotional honesty, then this is a pretty good place to start.




3. Having roared at Roy Blount's humor on the Garrison Keillor show, I really looked forward to reading his book making fun of the mother-son relationship so aptly caught up in the title, "Be Sweet". I was terribly disappointed and found him not only lacking in humor but exhibiting a real dislike for females altogether. It was a book I easily gave away to the second hand shop.



4. I was very surprised by this book on a number of levels. I've thought Blount's past works were funny, but also quite well thought out. Blount is never "funny" in the sense that Dave Berry is funny. There is no silliness about Blount; he is firmly grounded in reality.

   This work is very serious. It is his attempt to displell his "family curse." He explores his relationships with his parents, sister, and ex-wives. He speculates on the nature of humor and humorists.

   I thought the book was brilliant. It's like Blount is willing to talk about things that no one else will because doing so would sound stupid, but it's still what you want to say.

   An added bonus is Blount's voice. He is not a particularly elegant reader. But it is hard to imagine any other voice reading this work. I compare it to Jean Shepard, who also has the perfect voice for his own work.




5. By the end of this book, I knew for certain that it was worth reading although I had many doubts until then. Blount made me laugh and made me marvel at his skill, but he also bored me with his self-loathing and longueurs. The chapter on the troubles of men named after their fathers (juniors) was excruciatingly dull, and forgot to make mention of Hank Williams Junior, one of the most grandiose sufferers from this syndrome. Worse, Blount junior never really explained what made his mother so maddening. Nevertheless, he tells very well how he finally came to value what she (and his father) gave to him.

1 comments about Memories and Adventures: Library Edition.

1. First of all let me give you a product description as not much is provided with the item.The book is about 415 pages,a big,black leather covered one.It doesn't have a cover photogaph and looks like the library editions of the victoria era novels.As it is a reprint of the 1924 edition it does not contain the last chapter "up to date",which doyle added later to the revised edition of 1930.But as it was an "addition",i don't think it matters much ,and had any organic link to the original edition.The book is expensive,but it looks so gorgeous that it is almost an event,and therefore a collector's item.
   Doyle lived a life of many adventures and this book chronicles all of them.Although it hesitates sometimes as it goes back it is still a fascinating account of the great man's life, in his own words.It gives us the magical charm of being able to know about sherlock holmes from the mouth of his own creator.The various adventures of doyles life are described with the usual storyteller's skill.The humourous prose of doyle makes it an unforgettable experience.
   Every autobiography is in a way or other biased.The reader can read Teller of Tales: The Life of Arthur Conan Doyleby daniel stashower,the best biography in my opinion,for a more modern approach.