5 comments about Lopsided: How Having Breast Cancer Can Be Really Distracting.

1. Meredith is incredibly insightful and witty. She provides a unique take on a very serious subject. I read the book in one day- it was so engrossing I couldn't put it down. After all the jobs she describes in her book, it seems as though Meredith has found her calling as a writer.



2. My mom loved this book. She was recently diagnosed with the same cancer. It made her thankful that she did not have to go through as much as this woman had and that she is still alive and well. People need to know this type of breast cancer is out there too!



3. I had such a good time reading this book. Not something you would expect about a book from a cancer survivor. Perhaps it's because I share Meredith's atypical journey through life that involves multiple careers and dark sense of humor that I found it such a refreshing read, regardless of the subject matter.
   
   If you can't handle the fact that cancer is painful, the way it's treated in Western medicine is laughable (if not scary), or if you expect to have some golden halo rain down upon you giving you a new perspective on life so you can walk away from it thinking that, oh, a black woman with a sense of humor who has cancer can't possibly be feeling any kind of pain, then go find another book. It is a humor that is funny, I think, if you find David Sedaris holding up a cadaver when the car full of French people accidentally show up in his driveway, funny.
   
   Don't get this book if you're looking for some magical panacea that will make you forget that people who go through traditional chemo don't have all the pain and unnaturalness that is Western medicine shoved into their bodies. But if you understand that life and death can be painful and beautifully hilarious whether dodging dog poop in Paris, "Christian" school groups in college, or navigating cancer, well then, read on...Also, if you're some literary snob who has spent more years at university than talking to regular people on the street (i.e. having a normal, healthy social life), then go re-read one of the classics and don't try to superimpose critical theory or comparative analysis onto a memoir that is clearly not meant to speak to you.



4. What an amazing book from a first-time author! From the very first page, I was completely hooked. Meredith Norton gives us a view of her battle with breast cancer that is witty and humorous, yet candid and unflinching (this is probably not a book I'd give to someone who has just been diagnosed--although I'd highly suggest it for those who have been in treatment for a while and know what to expect, and I'd definately suggest it for everyone else!)
   
   The book is filled with entertaining details and digressions about Norton's childhood antics, as well as her life with her French husband, Thibault. I laughed out loud as she describes her experiences as an American with a limited French vocabulary struggling to raise a son in Paris. (Her conclusion: if you have the vocabulary of a French six year-old, you are treated like a six year-old.) She describes meeting with a French nursery school administrator, who tells her what she must do in order to assure that her son, Lucas, gets enrolled:
   
   "If you really, truly want little Loo-KAH to learn with our school," she said, "you must call me every day and remind me who you are. Say, 'This is the black American with the garish, orange jacket. My son is still interested.'"
   
   She ponders the fact that her diagnosis--the worst, most important news of her life--was given to her (and her reaction was witnessed by) two doctors who were complete strangers.
   
   "Bad news should be delivered privately. You should sit in a soundproof room with a mirror and a box of tissues. When you're ready, a piece of paper slips through the door. You turn it over and read: 'Sterile' or 'Nobody likes you' or 'Herpes Simplex II.' When you are ready, you emerge and fall into the embraces (maybe reluctant, depending on your diagnosis) of strangers."
   
   Norton's cancer battle isn't a shining superhuman Lance Armstrong tale of courageous strength. Her tale doesn't give cancer patients a figure on a pedestal that they can strive to live up to; she shows that despite the struggles and the odds, it is possible just to live. She is an everyday woman and mother (with a wonderfully skewed sense of humor) who is doing the best she can. She actually describes her frustration at reading one of Armstrong's books:
   
   "Every day of my chemo that I ate a Krispy Kreme doughnut or took a nap instead of doing yoga I cursed Lance Armstrong and his toned abs, tiny butt, and three kinds of cancer. [...] Give me some fat slob on welfare who never graduated from junior high and can't ride around the block without choking on his cigarette, and yet manages to pull himself together, go macrobiotic, and beat cancer, and I will show you one inspired Meredith Norton."
   
   Norton has said that it was her battle with cancer (and the constant insistence of family members) that pushed her into finally writing a book. It is unfortunate that such a horrific experience was the catalyst for this book, but fortunate that her talent has been revealed. Norton possesses an insanely hilarious wit and amazing way with words. I truly hope she writes more!



5. Not only was this book an enjoyable, smooth read, but it was hilarious. Norton has a way of bringing together seemingly disparate stories/experiences without ever sounding trite; in fact, many times her conclusions are powerful. Her vulnerability through a harrowing experience makes her easy to relate to and sympathetic, and she never asks for or tolerates pity.
   
   It's an engaging story, whether you're a survivor, a patient, a loved one of either, or someone who simply likes to read good books!!

5 comments about Cancer on $5 a Day* *(chemo not included): How Humor Got Me Through the Toughest Journey of My Life.

1. I am not your typical book reader ,but after finding a book about your favorite comedian I could not resist.This was litterally the first book I read in over 20 years.I loved the book and was well entertained.I now have a more insight on how Robert's last decade really was.



2. It's always encouraging when someone beats cancer. And non-Hodgkins lymphoma is especially tough to overcome. Robert Schimmel had the advantage of age, good health, and caring support in his battle. And no doubt his determined sense of humor helped a lot too, besides bringing a welcome uplift to his fellow chemo patients. His book demonstrates that humor grows out of even the direst situation and that horniness survives all assaults.
   
   There are no profound lessons in this volume beyond illustrating that mental attitude can make a bad time a little better. And whether attitude influences healing or not, it usually just feels better to be positive than negative.



3. I started reading after lunch today, and couldn't put it down. The writing is compelling and real, and inspiring in so many ways.
   I am grateful that Mr. Schimmel lived through it all, and even more grateful that his book enriches our lives by reminding us about what really matters. As a survivor myself, and having lost many relatives to cancer, the book had my emotions all over the place...but through it all, the humor prevails. I can't remember ever reading a book that had me laughing and crying at the same time.
   
   This book is in my collection after seeing him on Conan, and it's going to get a lot more readings from here on out. It's a keeper.



4. Humor is a gift, and Robert Schimmel has the gift.
   
   While some readers might think: "Cancer is no laughing matter", Schimmel's story shows how the use of laughter can lead a patient through the terror of cancer diagnosis and the devastating effects of treatment.
   
   If you or someone you know has heard the dreaded words: "You have cancer", get this book. It's absolutely inspiring, and will help you to laugh through your tears.



5. Robert has been one of my favorite comedians since the mid 80s. This is a very touching book. It sounds cliche, but it'll make you laugh and it'll make you cry. Being one of the worlds top comedians he is really able to tackle such heavy topics in a amusing way.
   
   Definitely a must read for anyone experiencing something similar or for any of his fans.

5 comments about The Woman at the Washington Zoo: Writings on Politics, Family, and Fate.

1. I used to read Marjorie Williams in the Washington Post, and was reminded of her work when her exceptionally moving essay "Hit by Lightning" was in a "best of" book by multiple authors. It was so good that I simply had to read this collection of only her work.
   
   The finest essays and profiles here are wonderful. The writing is outstanding, and ranges from great insight to humor and sadness and to the biting remark that takes down somebody famous a notch or two.
   
   My favorites were (besides "Hit by Lightning"):
   
   - "The Alchemist", a previously unpublished profile of her mother. What an exploration of a mother's relationship to her daughter and (presumably) perceptive view of her mother's life!
   
   - "Scenes from a Marriage" - oh, my, how it drills into the relationship between Clinton and Gore, after the 2004 election and back into their time in office. This essay was justifiably well-known.
   
   - "Bill Clinton, Feminist" - Ms. Williams shreds the feminists who defended President Clinton in his sexual escapades, while disregarding the women involved. She doesn't even break a sweat. Brutal and delightful reading.
   
   - "The Halloween of My Dreams" - her final column, about her daughter's Halloween, the last Halloween Ms. Williams would see.
   
   - The profiles of Jeb Bush and Barbara Bush, both of which offered fresh insights and information.
   
   - Of the columns, many of which are first rate, I particularly liked the one on Princess Diana's death (I'm not sure why, to be honest) and one on assisted suicide.
   
   The book actually got off to a slow start for me. The first two profiles were relatively dated and uninteresting, and the third, on Richard Darman, was wonderfully crafted, but I found myself not that curious about someone who moved rapidly into footnote status. However, Darman's profile had one of the best lines in the entire book: "As always, the vapor of self-certainty leaks off him like rocket fuel". Didn't these people know who they were up against in Marjorie Williams?
   
   The short columns included are mostly very good, yet they also suffer from the usual fate of newspaper columns, in that they don't age that well, as the topic in hand often quickly becomes old news. Ms. Williams is far from alone in that fate, of course, so some of these pieces serve as a reminder of past news to reconsider with hindsight and contemplate what has happened since.



2. This book made me realize how painful it could be to at sometimes for the lack of a better word be a " dubmass " It took me a lot of brushing up on my reading skills to fully appreceiate this book and it was very insightfull just as the other books that were recomened to me to be read if I liked this one were. It also taught me that caring=sharing which can cause mass confusion sometimes to people who need to improve there reading skills which in turn = understanding and then ultimatly joy and happiness for many years to come. However this just could be a hopeful thought, but I would like to think it holds true for all readers especially the ones that would enjoy reading A year of Magical Thinking, where I think it says something about country boys being of big hearts are stubborn and rarely give up on anything.



3. No, this isn't about the typical zoon--but about the "Zoo" that is Washington, D.C.
   
   Marjorie Williams, a journalist for the Washington Post, had a sense of unrelenting refusal to deal with just the surface reality--but find the truth beneath.
   
   Sitting here in the Midwest, some of these stories, some of the people are not players we hear about every day, but some were.
   
   Marjorie and Tim Noah (Senior writer for Slate) were married in 1990. In 2001, happy and healthy, Marjorie discovered a lump in her lower abdomen and after much effort, died in 2005 from liver cancer at the age of 47. Tim has selected what he feels are her most revealing columns written about politicians, the shakers and movers of Washington's social ad business life, and about her family.
   
   As an outsider I enjoyed reading about insiders like Ambassador Lucky Roosevelt and her long marriage, and other characters that made good reading.
   
   Jennifer Senior, New York Times Book Review said, "Williams was a crowbar, prying great quotes from her sources, and she found herself face to face with rather intimate details of their life."
   
   So true, whether she was writing about Bill and Hillary, the couple that always give us something to talk about, her own illness, her mother's illness, or her children--her observations were always sharp and often sweet.
   
   Some of my favorites were her most personal stories, like The Cat Race about how she was "going to raise her children," that is, until she actually had children. This felt very familiar.
   
   The Art of Fake (and Useful) Apology, (in the news again as I write this) used by politicians reminds us that this happens far too often.
   
   With another Presidential campaign heating up, Williams takes us back to 1992 when Al Gore was running for President (without hitching his star to Clinton). Her article, "Scenes from a Marriage" is about that time, and the end of that "marriage" and the not-too-obvious divorce of Clinton and Gore.
   
   Sadly the world will never again read about current events from her.
   
   Armchair Interviews says: This book was a New York Times Bestseller.



4. Really two books. One, a series of pieces about inside Washington stories, often with characters who are largely off stage but important in how things get done in the seat of empire. Rather than the usual insider's view, Ms. Williams has an extraordinarily keen eye for seeing what is there for all to see, perhaps along the lines of I.F. Stone's insistence on using only attributed sources. The second book is an account of her diagnosis and subsequent experiences with an ultimately fatal cancer, its impact on her life, outlook, work, as well and an account of her medical care.



5. I bought this book primarily because I enjoy memoir and it was represented in the media as a collection of personal essays by a woman who fought what was eventually a losing battle with cancer.
   
   In fact, the personal essays comprise the smaller part of this collection. Most pieces are in-depth political commentary or profiles of Washington, D.C. personalities. I'm not interested in that subject matter at all.
   
   To correct one of the other reviewers, this collection was compiled after Williams' death by her husband. It contains material that she apparently never intended to publish. But long-time fans of Williams should not fault *her* for what was and was not included in the book, since these decisions were made posthumously.
   
   Williams was a gifted writer -- insightful, precise, and painfully honest. I enjoyed the personal essays immensely (particularly the piece about her complex relationship with her mother) and even found myself reading and enjoying the political essays.

5 comments about Drunkard: A Hard-Drinking Life.

1. I heard Neil Steinberg being interviewed on a local radio show and decided to purchase the book. I was really both surprised and disappointed in what I read. Actually, it is a very quick and easy read and did keep my attention. However, discussion of AA and his making a monetary profit seems to go against the AA steps and traditions. I found this more of a "drunkalogue" much as you hear people's stories in an AA meeting. He didn't really connect with the spiritual foundation of the program and declaring his wife as his Higher Power I find absurd. I know that people do often struggle with the concept of a higher power, and I'm glad for his sobriety, but giving his Al-Anon wife so much control is dangerous. They each need to work on themselves, through their own programs of recovery. Just my opinion!



2. This was an excellent book for those affected in some way back alcoholism. It was a very honest portrayal of the winding, rocky road recovery can be. It is rare that one shot at treatment is sufficient. I appreciated
   several things - 1) Mr. Steinberg's honesty about his struggle with the spiritual aspect of AA. This is something that keep many people away from AA and I think his sharing of his ambivolence about it - yet going and finding something of use there may be of benefit to others. 2) His honest about his relapses. Again, its rare that the path is a straight one for most people in recovery. 3) This is a story of a 'functional alcoholic' rather than someone really at rock bottom.
   
   I found the book very helpful in gaining insight as to what it's like for someone through the process of recovery.



3. This is an excellent book for anyone that has an addiction, or for those that have lived with some form of dysfunction. In other words - everyone! The book doesn't suffer from pretense, and wisely leaves it to the reader to discern the futility of trying to repeat the same behaviour and expect different results. This is a lesson that applies to all aspects of life, not merely addiction.



4. "Drunkard" is a great book, with the author showing a wonderful use of words and a clever way to make his devastating story very funny. He laughs through his tears and so do the readers.



5. as a drinker i could relate to many of the problems the author faced.it was both informative and entertaining,laughing out loud in some instances.if you are or if you know or are involved with a colorful character you will enjoy and be more knowledgeable!and that's that!!!

5 comments about Breaking Back: How I Lost Everything and Won Back My Life.

1. When I learnt that James Blake, the author of the book, whom I have admired as a good tennis player, suffers from a condition which affects me as well, I was surprised and decided to pick up this book hoping to gain some insights by learning how he managed to stay fit enough to become a tennis pro....
   
   Though little has been discussed about Scoliosis,there is enough in the whole book, which I thoroughly enjoyed reading. The fundamental aspects which have governed the life of James Blake are seemingly obvious but hard to stick to and implement during trying times like the ones he had to face up in 2003 with a broken neck and losing his hero, his dad, to cancer - accepting what has transpired, taking one step at a time, focusing on process rather than results, count one's blessing rather than brooding what could have been, and simple things like these...
   
   It seems to me that we are good at learning things when we can tie them to experiences, both direct and vicarious. The lessons that I take away from the life of James Blake - how he dealt with career threatening injury in neck, a viral attack that left him paralyzed in left side of the face and made a comeback within a year, how his dad, who really comes out as a super hero as described by James Blake, dealt with imminent death...
   
   I would highly recommend this auto biographical account to anybody who is concerned about gaining some insights into what really defines the strength of one's character...



2. I learned about James Blake last year when I started watching tennis matches on the Tennis Channel. The book is easy to read. I highly recommend it.



3. The most boring tennis book I ever read.I bought almost every single tennis book Amazon has to offer, and this one is by far the dullest one.This book is not aimed at the serious tennis player.You'll learn nothing new from it.It's just a personal journal where he keeps trying to take the focus away from tennis. The only conclusion I arrived to is that Blake's life without tennis is boring as hell.



4. Interesting, inspiring, uplifting story. Reminds us that there are still a lot of GOOD people in this world.
   
   A good and enjoyable lesson for people of all ages, athletes and couch potatoes alike. After reading, you will be a James Blake fan, even if you have never seen a tennis match.



5. This is by far a must read for any person. Realizing the hardships and injuries for Mr. Blake to overcome is incredible. The best part about reading his book is the way you view life and to understand everything happens for the best.
   
   Towards the end of the book there is a chapter on his friends who he calls the J-BLOCK. People would kill to have something like that Today, and the best part about it is he is so great full to be where he is today.

No comments about Speaking for Myself: My Life from Liverpool to Downing Street.

5 comments about Free Byrd: The Power of a Liberated Life.

1. I started reading this book the first day I got it and it was hard to put down. It's very well written and easy to follow.
   I am truly blessed to know Paul, and after reading his book, I know now that we are both Fighters and want the same things in life.
   I recommend this book to anyone who thinks they are struggling in life with the Lord.
   I think everyone should read this book even if you are not a baseball fan, cuz it's really not about baseball at all.
   Great Job Brother and look forward to seeing you in the offseason.
   God Bless and Thank You for your wonderful words.
   God Bless,
   Cosmo*



2. I almost did not get this book... I was thinking -- great another baseball player puts out a book full of the "normal" christian pop culture and how Jesus is great and all that jazz.
   
   But I have to admit... this is an amazing book... it is down right unvarnished in your face... this is my life and how my faith has grown through out the years...
   
   It is one of my top books of 2008... it really is not about baseball but more about life and living an authentic christian life... not a perfect super clean verson -- but a real down in the dirt true christian life.
   
   I totally recommed this book.
   
   I look forward to Paul Byrd's next book...



3. I couldn't put this book down and it had me choking up with emotion time and time again. The reason is because Paul Byrd peeled away all the phony facades too many Christians hide behind and gave a stunningly open, honest, transparent and moving look into the life of a man earnestly struggling to better his relationship with Jesus Christ.
   
   Byrd focuses less on baseball and much more on the journey of what a true, intimate relationship with Jesus Christ is supposed to look like. (And is anything more important when you consider the stakes that this game of life holds for us?)
   
   Paul Byrd gets it - nobody's perfect, and yet God loves us anyway, offering His amazing grace, compassion and love through Jesus. Our job is not to try and earn it through sin management or following a list of tips and techniques, but rather ACCEPT God's love and enter into a deep, intimate relationship with Him. And out of that, we cannot help but be transformed into someone new, someone who seeks not sin (even though we'll still fall short sometimes) but rather to walk in lockstep with the One who loves us so deeply and so truly. To be loved, to really allow yourself to be loved in spite of all your struggles and imperfections, to really take Jesus at His Word ... this is what Paul Byrd inspires us to do.
   
   This book is less about baseball and more about the spiritual journey Byrd went on, and how even the trappings and fame of being a famous professional athlete leaves you empty inside if you don't know Christ. Byrd's chilling realization of this came when he won a national title with LSU in 1991 and was like, "That's it? That's all I feel?" moments after the on-field celebration began.
   
   The other thing from this book that continues to stick with me is Paul Byrd's approach to understanding and cultivating a relationship with God. He talks about how so many of us who grew up Catholic or in other denominations try to approach God with strict routines, memorized prayers, formal behaviors, etc. Byrd makes a great point when he says we would never approach our wives or close friends that way. But yet we do it with God, whose deepest desire is to have a close, loving and intimate relationship with us.
   
   Byrd's book is another way God continues to open my eyes toward the TRUTH about what it means to believe in Jesus Christ.
   
   I praise Paul Byrd for his transparency and for leading with his own weakness, because in the end it makes him human, helps me relate to him and glorifies God.
   
   After all, it's the truth about myself - the honest, unperfect truth - that attracts others to me, not all the preaching in the world.
   
   Lastly, Byrd really impresses as a writer. Having written my own Christian baseball novel The King's Game I was so excited to see Byrd's book, and I have to admit I was blown away at how crisp and clear his voice is as a narrator. The book moves at a fantastic pace - a very easy and fast read.
   
   He also had me laughing out loud over and over with his razor-sharp and oftentimes self-depricating wit.
   
   This is a book I'd give to anyone and everyone, Christian or not, sports fan or not, because it is the courageous and moving story of one man's journey toward the most important goal of all existence - knowing and sharing your life with Jesus Christ.
   
   Praise Jesus for his amazing love and blessings on Paul Byrd for this honest, much-needed memoir!



4. I bought this book because I love baseball and the Lord and because I have much respect for those seemingly few players who are successful both on the field and in their spiritual lives. The book is filled with great stories about Paul's baseball experiences, but what touched me most was how Paul recognizes how his relationship with his earthly father has shaped his view of his Heavenly Father. This is so true in my own life and it is comforting to know that someone as successful as Paul carries some of the same burdens as the rest of us. In this book, Paul writes, "I had spent most of my life imitating my living legacy, Larry the Legend (his father), by being a good, honest, and just person apart from Christ, which is impossible." I couldn't agree more! I too want to live "from Christ." Thank you Paul for sharing your stories, your insights and your life experiences so that we all learn from them. Your Father is proud!



5. Paul Byrd is living proof that Professional Baseball Players can and do have talent in areas off the field. Christians are not perfect.
   They recognized they are sinners deserving hell, they have repented of their sin to God, asked forgiveness, placed their faith in the blood of Jesus as payment of their sin-debt which guarantees their eternal salvation, then asked that God begin to make them into the person He always wanted them to be.
   We are real people, in a life-long struggle, fighting real temptations. We are just doing it with the awesome help of The Holy Spirit. Paul doesn't rely on religious systems to guide his Christian walk. He goes right to the source of all knowledge and all the wisdom we need for life in this world and for eternity to come, God's perfect and Holy Word.
   Paul, you nailed it. I just hope and pray you keep writing.
   Thanks for your testimony.
   Tim Billheimer
   Alliance, Ohio (Tribe Country)

5 comments about Doc Holliday: The Life and Legend.

1. I think back to some of the Westerns I watched on TV many decades ago. "Wyatt Earp," with the theme song's words, "Wyatt Earp, Wyatt Earp, Brave courageous and bold." Or Bat Masterson, "He wore a cane and derby vest. . . . They called him Bat, Bat Masterson." One thing in common with both? John Henry "Doc" Holliday.
   
   This is a detailed biography of Doc Holliday, the notorious gambler and gunman of the West (called Doc because he was a dentist who, from time to time, actually earned his keep by plying that trade, although gambling seemed more compelling to him!).
   
   He died young, at age 36, of tuberculosis (how many readers recall some actor playing Doc Holliday with an ever present cough, signifying his ailment)? Gary Roberts, the author, notes that Holliday has an elusive element to him. He notes (Page 3): "Yet the measure of the man remains incomplete." Roberts does yeoman work pulling together what is known about Holliday--but there are gaps in our understanding of the man. He notes that (Page 5) "This work, then, is not the final word on the life of Doc Holliday. . . ."
   
   The book begins, in standard fashion, of examining the character's youth. He was a southerner, and his family moved when he was young to get out of the way of Sherman's march to the sea. As a young man, he studied dentistry at the Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery. Then, after a time working as a dentist, he moved westward, for reasons not completely ascertained. Surely, he had come to know that he suffered from "consumption," but that probably was not the sole reason for his peregrinations.
   
   The book goes on to detail his life in the West, wandering from one place to another (one almost gets weary at the travels of Holliday and his companions, including the Earp brothers). There is the tale of his saving Wyatt Earp's life in Dodge City, of his move to Tombstone (where he took part in the famous battle at the O. K. Corral), of his gambling, of his turbulent relationship with Kate Elder (possessor of several names), of his work as a "shootist." His many entanglements with the law (while sometimes serving with the law, to make things more confusing!).
   
   Then, his last few years, with some peaceful and some not so peaceful moments.
   
   All in all, a good biography, although sometimes one can get lost in the details and even though sometimes one wonders if a single individual, suffering from tuberculosis, could have wandered so widely across the land. Nonetheless, a good starting point of the reader wants to understand a bit more about this rather mysterious historical figure.



2. Given that Doc Holliday left virtually no record of his own behind, Roberts has done an amazing job of researching and piecing together this detailed portrait of Holliday's life, those whom he encountered and the worlds he inhabited. Copiously footnoted but eminently readable, Roberts' book uncovers some of the man inside the legend. Highly recommended.



3. Doc Holliday books always suffer from the well-known fact that Doc left absolutely no written record of his own. He is, as has been noted, known only through the eyes of others. Some of his contemporaries, like Bat Masterson, are probably accurate in their appraisals. However we can never know much more about Doc himself unless something that he wrote shows up. And, it probably never will. The letters from him to his cousin are probably all gone. So we are left with a bunch of facts that we can rearrange and interpret all we want, without any guarantee that we are any closer to the truth. The author of this latest book does a good job of arranging and stacking what is known about Doc, and does a nice job of interpretation. I liked his ideas about Doc's gravesite, but wonder about the pictures...a couple of them don't seem to be of Doc (are they generally accepted to be, or not?). The author also does a nice job of questioning, appropriately, some truths that have been more or less accepted with little proof over the years (like Doc riding alone across the High Plains). A final comment: this book is dry, but is written in such a way that readers can make their own interpretations about Doc and his motivations, character, etc. Overall, a good, worthy addition to the Doc library; unless something new is discovered, this book will give you everything there is to know about Doc Holliday.



4. This is a truly masterful work. I bought it as I was interested in Holliday and the development of the West. What I found was an historical book with much about the society, economics and culture of the mid-19th Century South, as well as the rapid migration to the central and Southwest. Facinating and exceedingly entertaining and informative.



5. I was given this book as a gift. I enjoyed the movie Tombstone back when I was in college, and Doc Holliday certainly is a colorful Western outlaw. So I was really looking forward to reading this book to get the facts behind the legend. While I think the author did an admirable job researching the book, I felt his text was too dry much of the time. I couldn't understand how an author could take an exciting outlaw who interacted with so many famous characters and write out the story in a way that made me picture a monotone college professor speaking. Back in the 1990s I read John Myers Myers biography of Doc Holliday and I remember enjoying it much more. Maybe it wasn't as well researched or documented, but it was definitely more lively.

5 comments about Farewell, My Subaru: An Epic Adventure in Local Living.

1. I am adding this book to my list of top 5 books of all time. I loved it! If you are interested in living a more simple, self-sufficient lifestyle, this book is for you. It is funny and easy to read, and full of great info. I am telling all of my friends about it.



2. It was an eye opener and such a great read! Thanks Doug!
   
   I usually read non-fiction or intense thrillers, so I wasn't too sure how this book would favor amongst the rest. It won me over.
   
   Doug's book really impacted the way I think. Just cutting back a little bit on certain things makes a HUGE difference. Not to mention that my fast paced life seems to have slowed down now that I am more conscience about what I use and how I use it. Things like gardening, planting trees and building economic structures (solar panel mounts) add to quality time with my boyfriend. Not only is it educational for me and my other half, but these are ideas that we can instill on our children...when the time comes for them of course. Dougs humor and honesty, and anti-Bush quirks add all the bit more to this book. Pick it up today!



3. The book is about the author's adventures when he moved to New Mexico to live green and reduce his carbon footprint. He raises goats and chickens, gets a diesel truck and has it converted to run on grease from restaurants, grows veggies in a garden, and puts in a solar water heater. I was smiling throughout the entire book. He also made a lot of great points about how everyone can do just a little to help save the environmen. He is a great story teller and I love the book.



4. I found Doug's book inspiring AND funny. It made me smile, laugh out loud and ponder ways in which I too can become more self sufficient. Would highly recommend!



5. I loved the book and admire Doug's efforts. I laughed out loud several times!

5 comments about Identical Strangers: A Memoir of Twins Separated and Reunited.

1. I read maybe 1-2 books a year (excluding parenting books). A book has to grab me right away. This one did.



2. Unless you're adopted, you cannot possibly truly understand the feelings all the secrets and lies generated by the archaic adoption system have fostered in the adoptee. This book offers invaluable insight, is well written, and most compelling. Ten years older than the twins, and involved in adoption searches for NYC adoptees, the Louise Wise process is a familiar one to me; interesting that when they closed, Spence-Chapin (Spence baby here) took over their mess. Agencies may have changed their tune over the years and through changing times, but only when all parties realize that truth is the best partner in adoption will any adoptee have a chance. Elyse and Paula have done well to shine a light on a terrible system that has harmed a multitude of victims.



3. The bare outline of the story is captivating: twin girls are separated at birth, neither knows that the other exists, nor do the adoptive parents know, and then they not only find each other, they also find out that they were separated as part of a failed psychology study, and that mental illness is behind some of the experiments that were done.
   
   But despite the intrinsic interest in such a tale, the resulting book is less well-done than one might expect, especially since both twins are writers. Each event in their journey to discover the truth about themselves is told twice, in the voice of each woman, and there is a great deal more repetition than even this somewhat awkward device would entail. Again and again they discuss with each other and with us whether they're glad they found each other or not, how it feels to see one's own mannerisms in another person, and whether or not they really want to find their birth mother. Their soul-searching doesn't seem to go very deep, it just seems repetitive.
   
   And one of the oddly annoying things about their story is that in their photos on the back cover, they don't look like identical twins. In fact, they look more like mother and daughter. It's not quite clear how they even know that they *are* identical.
   
   I read this in a couple of days, and once I got straight who was who and which voice belonged to which sister, I enjoyed the suspense of what they would learn. But this does seem like it would have made a better magazine article than book.



4. I could not stop reading this book -- devoured it in a weekend. This is not just an analysis of the twin relationship or of adoption practice. Nor is it a typical narrative. It is a riveting personal story, like a diary, honestly told by two people suddenly faced with a stunningly unique challenge to their notions of what it means to be "me." The personal nature of the storytelling is what gripped me -- at times a bit ragged, at times emotionally inconsistent, and with twists and turns no novelist would dare invent. It's very real, and I often found myself wishing i could just go have coffee with Paula and Elyse to hear their latest. They are remarkably introspective people who question rather than just accept.



5. I loved this book. I love reading about twins and their similarities. This is a fun and interesting story about twins who were separated at birth.
   Great summer reading.