1 comments about Eula.

1. It would be nice if it were true. She can't even remember the year of her own mother's death. Eula is my dad's sister and since I was born in 1965, I can assure you that her mother was quite alive until at least 1969 because she lived with us and was my babysitter. As for the other stories, my dad never took us to see her, even though we visited his other sister and his brother's widow. We lived in the same county and my only memory of this woman was after my dad's funeral! It was said that she had a few screws loose.
   
   After she wrote the first book, same contents, different title, my sisters and I sat down with our grandmother's siblings who discredited everything she wrote and who said they were quite disappointed with Eula.
   
   It would be a nice piece of history if it were true...

5 comments about When Katie Wakes: A Memoir.

1. What a brave woman this author is. She bears her soul for all to read. Her heart wrenching journey leaves you feeling hopeful in the face of any adversity and truly empowered as if all things really are possible.
   I count Connie May fowler as one of my living heros!



2. Haven't we all wished at one time or another that we had talked the significant others in our beloved's past?!?!
   
   
   After knowing and teaching with Connie May for a number of years, I waited far too long to read Katie; Connie May had left the building. And I now long to share my thoughts with her.
   
   Her compelling memoir strikes a chord with anyone who has walked away from the carnage of a love/hate relationships, and of the fear that forces one to stay too long.
   
   I will say that Connie Mae's courageous relevations bring to the surface the consequences of failing to "out" the abusive for fear of sounding like a victim, even though, typically, an abuser--be their tactics verbal, psychological, physical--or any combination thereof, trumps the will of their partner with the ploy of taunting and by suggesting that "you enjoy playing the victim role."
   
   These masters of their own game create a nearly unbreakable cycle by constant character atacks that serve to undermine ego structures,and emtional equillibrium. The resulting co-dependency morphs into a version of the Stockholm Syndrome, wherein ties to the captor are reinforced.
   
   As anyone who has experienced this "crazy-making" life knows,it is a long, hard recovery, but failure to expose exploitaton is like an endorsement that permits him/her to move on to yet another target, whom he/or she will expertly convince that the former spouse,lover or colleague was "crazy" and presenting themselves, instead, as the abused.
   
   
   Connie May's courage makes us all want to stand up and shout!



3. There's no question Connie May Fowler is a gifted story teller and extremely talented writer. Some passages are so searing and full of truth I've gasped when reading them. Unfortunately, the story she tells here is not fiction. I won't go into the plot because other reviewers have.
   But I will say that this book will open up the eyes of readers who wonder why rape and domestic violence can damage people so deeply. In telling her story, Fowler goes further - also showing how 'teasing' and discrimination against someone because of the appearance of their face can cause deep and life-lasting scars. So far, the latter is a problem barely touched on by authors and psychologists.
   Read this book with an open mind, and you'll find her story underscores how cruelty, shaming and bullying can almost blow out the flame of a promising human being before she even gets a chance to realize her own talent.
   Conversely, this book demonstrates how kindness and compassion can help a suffering soul survive and even bloom.
   Fowler is never pitiful and pathetic, and even when the most degrading acts are done to her, she remains a person with dignity.
   Free from cruelty and shame at last and embraced by love, the real Connie Fowler emerges in the end.



4. When you get right down to it, authors like Connie May Fowler are not much different than the rest of us. Fowler bears the scars of a horrific childhood and early adulthood, one strewn with the wreckage of a shattered self-image fueled by the alcoholic abuse of her mother and the degradation of a hideous relationship with an older man. She, as have many of her readers, has suffered through despair thick enough to reduce her to attempted suicide and has faced the depths of self-abdication so profound that she began to absorb the very evil identity her tormented partner imposed on her.

   What makes Fowler different from us, however, is language. In her hands, words make anguish palpable, sadness tangible, struggle imperative. As an author, Fowler is able to make sense of her life, and, in so doing, help us make sense of ours. "When Katie Wakes" may well be the most brutally coarse and ugly memoir you will ever read, but, at the same time, one of the most beautiful and impassioned pleas for individual integrity and indomitability ever composed. It is nothing less than a masterpiece.

   Though Ms. Fowler credits her adoption of a loyal and loving dog, Katie, as the symbolic act of reclamation and reaffirmation of life, she sells herself far short. The grandchild and child of abused women, the child Fowler becomes the target of her drunken mother's rage. The Fowler children become adept actors, hiding the shame of family disgrace and brutality under the veneer of achievement. Keeping verbal assaults invisble, preventing others from recognizing the constant physical beatings absorbed by Mama, Connie's family life resembled "smoke and mirrors, deception and shame." A "wall of silence" shrouded suffering. As a child, Connie received sustenance from words and books, and her resultant triumph as an adult vindicates her choice. Her older sister, however, absorbs and internalizes the viciousness of her home, and, consequently, develops anorexia as an adult.

   In a remarkable self-portrait, Fowler describes a wretched adult woman, unloved, unlovable, disgusting and repulsive. Her self-hatred is "untainted and unhinged." She believes herself "so ugly" that only an abusive, impotent, failed radio celebrity would be willing to love her. Yet, there is not a single note of self-pity in this wrenching memoir. Fowler reminds us that her mother's life, obliterated from a childhood rape, transcends her own in loss. Mama was "an angry woman who believed life had let her down. And it had." From disappointment to the target of her own husband's physical abuse, Fowler's mother recirculates and intensfies the pain, deliberately deflecting it on her children.

   As a young woman, Fowler has not escaped her mother's imprint. Indeed, her chosen partner encapsulates her mother's jagged opinion. Tense is irrelevant when Fowler hears herself described as "stupid," or "an ungrateful whore," or a "lousy excuse" of a lover or daughter. When she hears her mother decry her existence, "I wish...I had died the day you were born," Fowler must come to grips with an essential life choice: descent into emotional self-immolation or ascent into a struggle for life and affirmation.

   "When Katie Wakes" bravely portrays Fowler's battle for identity and wholeness. Her steadfast determination to "take responsibility for my own happiness, for my own sense of self-worth" is the best medicine for any person struggling to make sense of inner turmoil and despair. When she proclaims her need to discover "what my placer in the world should be," she speaks for any person on the cusp of a life-altering decision searching for the courage to embrace life's potential. This emotion-laden memoir is eloquent testimony to the ability of one person to wrestle life from death, hope from despair, the future from the past.




5. Connie May Fowler's, "When Katie Wakes" is masterful glimpse into the soul of a battered women. I could not put this book down once I started and I finished it in an afternoon. A heartfelt account of one women's journey from both inner and outer torments to wakefulness and a sort of freedom, I would recommend this book to anyone. Fowler's easy writing style opens the door for us to descend easily into the hell that is home to the battered woman. Often wondering exactly what is was that kept a woman from mentally walking away from her abuser when she could physically do so, Fowler's insight has put the answer into perspective and I will never have to ask that question again.

1 comments about Flares of Memory: Stories of Childhood During the Holocaust.

1. I had to read this book for a class, I am a senior at college. I attend school around the PIttsburgh area, so I am proud to know that this is from here. There is a story Robert Mendler who is a great speaker. he spoke to my class a few weeks ago. It is good to know that the stories are being written down so generations to come will know what happened and how people survived.

No comments about Out of India: A Raj Childhood.

3 comments about Gum-Dipped: A Daughter Remembers Rubber Town (Ohio History and Culture).

1. As a former rubber worker who also grew up in the shadow of Harvey Firestone, I found the book to be accurate and compelling.



2. Depressing, and weird. Not my kind of book. Well written gramatically but as for substance and material it was a bore and a nuisance to read.



3. I was deeply moved by Joyce Dyer's tribute to her father, an expression of love that manages to eschew mere sentimentality.
   What is impressive is that Gum-Dipped succeeds on another level entirely. Lots of books claim to be about the sense of place, or urban tissue, or the urban experience (as opposed to form), but not very many deliver on that promise. Gum-Dipped really does convey a sense of what it meant to grow up in Akron during the 1950s and 60s--of what it meant to live in a company town, to count on Harvey Firestone to see you through, and to be betrayed in the end.

5 comments about Feather in the Storm: A Childhood Lost in Chaos.

1. I loved this story. I hope Emily Wu writes more about her life and what led her to America. This was a beautiful story about how the cultural revolution in China robbed people of there childhoods and destroyed families. I intend to read more from this author.



2. Feather in the Storm is a heart-wrenching and deeply moving story of a childhood lost in the terrors of Communist China. The story opens as three-year-old Mao, as she is known by family and friends, meets her father for the first time - in a concentration camp. Moved from family to family and from city to village, little Mao finds herself striving to learn who she is and where she belongs. Fed by her starving grandmother and protected by her outcast parents, Mao attends school and performs her daily chores at home without complaint, maintaining her hope for a brighter future.
   
   Mao's father, a university professor who studied in America, has been labeled as an extreme rightist by the communist party in China. Cast out of the university apartments, Mao's family is sentenced to live in a tiny village so that they can "learn from the peasants," becoming better citizens. Here, Mao and her family live in a tiny mud house which melts away in storms, leaving the family exposed to the elements. Forced to leave home as a teenager after high school, Mao is sent to live in a remote village on the top of a mountain where she falls in love with a young man she is forbidden to marry.
   
   Throughout all of the trials and tribulations Mao faces growing up, and in every village and town she lives in, she is able to make friends and gain the respect of her teachers and neighbors. With an undaunted courage to survive, Mao teaches the reader that hope can be found no matter what the circumstances. Surrounded by death and destruction, Mao creates a life for herself and embraces those who struggle by her side.
   
   Author Emily Wu expertly captures the essence of what life was like during this tremulous age, and helps the reader experience the drama from a firsthand point-of-view.
   
   Armchair Interviews says: Stunning read.



3. Emily Wu and Larry Engelmann book "Feather in the Storm", an amazing openess of Emily Wu's life and history of China during the Cultural Revolution. The events that unfold carries the reader from youth to adulthood during a time of hardship and struggle which reminds us why hope and love is so neccessary and reasons to allow history to not repeat itself...



4. My wife and I met Emily Wu at SIUE while on her book tour. Her story was amazing, so we had to buy the book to get the details.
   
   It normally takes me about a year to read a book, but this one I devoured in a matter of days. The perspective of the book grows as she grows. In the beginning it is written as though you are only a couple feet tall - the details are in the words she hears, people's feet and the underside of cribs and tables. Later on she gets taller and you start to experience more of the people around her. But, like the limitations put on a pre-teen, she can only see so much and know so much, therefore her story is limited to just what she could see and understand. You feel as though you are a child right alongside her.
   
   Often I found myself trying to figure out what things meant (names of Mao's movements and doctrine), but that just muddled the story. At times you feel like more should be written about the backstory of the Red Guard, but if you think about the fact that she didn't know much about them at the time it leaves it all in that child-like perspective. She writes about what she saw and read and experienced as a child, especially her reactions to how it changed the people around her.
   
   The tempo is well-paced and manages to catch you off-guard. It covers issues like capping and de-capping, the invasion of the Red Guard at the Anhui University campus in Hefei, book burning, cleansing of the "Old" ways, living conditions, food, suicide, female infanticide, arranged marriage, bound feet, class struggles, child-on-child violence and much more.
   
   When you are finished, you will view your life through a new pair of glasses. You won't be able to go 5 feet without finding 100 things to be truly thankful for.



5. "Feather in the Storm" is a fantastic book. It is well written, and enthralling. I rarely get attached to a story, but I read it through cover to cover with only one break. I couldn't put it down. I am looking forward to the sequel! It is depressing but enlightening. People are really terrible to one another. There is a whole generation lost to the policies of Chairman Mao in the chaos. This comes to light in this true life story of Emily Wu's struggle to survive.

3 comments about Black Days, Black Dust: The Memories of an African American Coal Miner.

1. One of the joys of life is the opportunity to have a conversation with someone whose life experiences are vastly different from our own. My curiosity about the real-world work life of an underground coal miner, ... plus a chance web search, led me to Black Days, Black Dust. What a gem!
   
   In reading this book it almost seemed like I was having a 'personal conversation' while sitting on the miner's front porch. It is a true account of 40 years of working underground in the coal fields. Very interesting account of every day life in a coal town (both above and below ground). It is a world apart from today's high-rise city office worker, ...yet curiously in other ways, there are many similarities!

   Easy to read & very informative.




2. One of the joys of life is the opportunity to have a conversation with someone whose life experiences are vastly different from our own. My curiosity about the real-world work life of an underground coal miner, ... plus a chance web search, led me to Black Days, Black Dust. What a gem!
   
   In reading this book it almost seemed like I was having a 'personal conversation' while sitting on the miner's front porch. It is a true account of 40 years of working underground in the coal fields. Very interesting account of every day life in a coal town (both above and below ground). It is a world apart from today's high-rise city office worker, ...yet curiously in other ways, there are many similarities!

   Easy to read & very informative.




3. I grew up in Pennsylvania, in the coal country. When a friend told me about Black Days, I thought I would give it a try. I'm glad I did. I have heard and read much of the way of life in 20th century Appalachia, but never had it tied together in a single book. If you are curious about life in the beginning of the last century; about the workings of the coal industry or simply want an insight into "How things used to be in West Virginia" try Black Days. I thoroughly enjoyed the book.

5 comments about My Father, Marconi (Picas Series).

1. For a long time, I have studied Marconi since I am an amateur radio operator. I have visited his two stations on Cape Cod and even wrote a short web article about the first message he sent from Cape Code to England. Yet I found much new information in this book. Some of the comments tied loose ends together for me. If you are interested in early radio or Marconi, I suggest you read this book. It is paperback book size, but has a vast amount of information and pictures written by someone who knew him well.



2. I was held captive by a book that is a generous tribute of a loving daughter to her Father, Guglielmo Marconi. Degna Marconi allows us an insight into a chapter in her family history, and introduces us to the science behind her Fathers' inventions, his passion, his single-mindedness, his genius.
   Marconi grew up in Bologna, at the center of his Mother's world. Without formal schooling, bright and gifted Guglielmo was allowed to develop at his own pace. Inspired by a book on Benjamin Franklin, his imagination was fired up, and he started experimenting with electricity and passing signals across distances. Later as a young adult in Great Britain, Marconi together with a small group of dedicated and passionate men and scientists made his ideas a working reality. The rest is history, and we all are beneficiaries.
   Last summer when I stayed at Cape Cod, I took a detour and a walk at South Wellfleet. Marconi Station is no longer there, but the display tells us of messages that were relayed for the first time over great distances, between Great Britain and America. One of the early demonstrations of importance of communicating over long distances was when the signals were received, informing the world of the tragedy of the maiden voyage of Titanic.
   While most of us still grapple with understanding the way signals travel, the ideas and inventions of Guglielmo Marconi have become a life transforming reality. As a mother living in Melbourne, Australia, with a daughter in New York, and a daughter in London, I bow to the genius of Marconi. His work made it possible for us to remain close, it made the "tyranny of distance" more bearable.
   This book is more interesting than any fiction. Degna Marconi writes with literary skill that is outstanding.
   We are closer to understanding Guglielmo Marconi, the man, when we read his own words: "genius is gift of work continuously applied"
   Recommended reading!



3. Review: My father, Marconi

   What magnificant reading this is! This book is a must for those who would agree that a good biography is incomparably more valuable than even a great work of fiction. Degna Marconi has succeeded in recording her father's life with both scrutiny and filial affection. She has maintained a very high level in every aspect: what she tells us about scientific evolution in its historical context is witty, precise and fascinating whereas her personal touch never errs on the side of biased family pride. She is as good an author as her father was a man of science!
   This portrait of Marconi and his times at the beginning of the era of global communication is all the more interesing right now a hundres years after it all began.
   "My father, Marconi" should be on the shelf of anyone who prefers reflection to mere consuption.

   Susanne Regehr




4. If I had to pick the one book (and there are many out there) that best describes Guglielmo Marconi, the inventor of wireless communication, this would definitely be it. This book, written by Marconi's eldest daughter, Degna, is one of the best biographies I have ever read, in part because of the enormous charisma of the subject and in equal part because of the obvious respect and affection with which he is treated by Degna Marconi.
   With only a vague idea of who Marconi was and fearing a book filled with technical jargon I picked up this book with a little suspicion at first. What a wonderful surprise! Degna Marconi's story was engaging from the first few paragraphs and rivetting up until the end. I quickly became engrossed in this fascinating story of a young man who, instead of going to university, spends his days experimenting with sending radio signals across his parents' garden, using homemade equipment and information gathered from scientific magazines, and then his tireless struggle to improve and promote his inventions which takes him first to London, then Canada, and the U.S. Degna Marconi presents the historical and scientific facts in a clear and concise manner without sacrificing detail. The work is both rewarding for those interested in science as well as those of us after a good read. Indeed, the charm of this book is that it reads like a real page turning novel. Loads of little anecdotes and commentaries colour the story without obscuring it. The reader gets a wonderful insight into a world of wealth and luxury, cut-throat competition and scientific innovation.
   The book describes the novelty and excitement of Marconi's first experiments and then moves on to describe Marconi's struggles to patent his inventions, circumvent his ever more numerous competitors and expand the range and use of his technology. In fact, Marconi emerges not only as a brilliant scientist but above all as an energetic and resourceful entrepreneur. This account of Marconi's work to establish radio as a practical and useful alternative to other more established technologies (such as the telephone) is thrilling to read and is as relevant today as it was 100 years ago. I especially enjoyed reading about the heroic radio operator who continued sending S.O.S. signals from the sinking Titanic and about Marconi's long, lonely and often frustrating struggle to establish radio contact across the Atlantic.
   Marconi's private life was no less exciting and tumultuous. The book's description of Marconi's love of the beautiful Beatrice O'Brien, his efforts to win over the undecided Beatrice and their wedding is entertaining and often humorous. The strain of Marconi's ever increasing work and fame on his family, the tragic divorce that neither he nor Beatrice really wanted and Marconi's complicated relationship with his children, especially his son Giulio, are all described with subtle and touching insight. Degna Marconi is also able to convey Marconi's charm and subtle sense of humour. Highly recommended.



5. This book by Mrs Marconi was extremely touching; we know so much about Marconi the inventor, the public figure but what makes this book so original is that it was so clearly written by someone who knew him well and loved him even more. Set side by side are descriptions of his scientific breakthroughs and very intimate glimpses of him as a person, many of them humorous and understanding.

   The book is also very well written, interesting but at the same time readable and enjoyable. I have lent my copy of the book to many of my friends.

5 comments about Fathering Words: The Making of an African American Writer.

1. Fathering Words portrays the grief and loss one man feels when his father and brother suddenly die within two years of each other. Their deaths cause Miller to recall how seldom he and his father spoke, and yet, he always knows his father loves the family. That singular way one person cares for and remembers another is at the spiritual core of this book. What does a son inherit from the men in his family when there are few conversations? Miller compares his life and his dreams to that of his older brother, and maps out the goals for his own future as he marries, has his own children, and embarks on his career as a poet. He punctuates the story with the gracious voice of his older sister, Marie, as he imagines how the family might have looked to her. Marie carries the secrets and stories that filter down to the younger son as rumors and tales. She becomes a source of information and verification of the family history. Using a network of subtle references to religion, classical and jazz music, basketball and baseball, as well as motifs from literary works, Miller provides a number of avenues by which a broad spectrum of readers will be able to enter and inhabit his poignant text.

   For those who want to write about their own lives, the book provides a model for creating scenes in small vignettes that become interconnected by the end of the chapter, as opposed to providing a direct narrative path from the beginning of a life to the present. For writers who aspire to become published, and perhaps even famous, Miller chronicles the encounters he has with a number of writers, revealing the history of African American literature in the past thirty years.

   I teach Fathering Words in a senior-level college course on autobiography at the University of Southern Indiana. ...




2. Fathering Words portrays the grief and loss one man feels when his father and brother suddenly die within two years of each other. Their deaths cause Miller to recall how seldom he and his father spoke, and yet, he always knows his father loves the family. That singular way one person cares for and remembers another is at the spiritual core of this book. What does a son inherit from the men in his family when there are few conversations? Miller compares his life and his dreams to that of his older brother, and maps out the goals for his own future as he marries, has his own children, and embarks on his career as a poet. He punctuates the story with the gracious voice of his older sister, Marie, as he imagines how the family might have looked to her. Marie carries the secrets and stories that filter down to the younger son as rumors and tales. She becomes a source of information and verification of the family history. Using a network of subtle references to religion, classical and jazz music, basketball and baseball, as well as motifs from literary works, Miller provides a number of avenues by which a broad spectrum of readers will be able to enter and inhabit his poignant text.

   For those who want to write about their own lives, the book provides a model for creating scenes in small vignettes that become interconnected by the end of the chapter, as opposed to providing a direct narrative path from the beginning of a life to the present. For writers who aspire to become published, and perhaps even famous, Miller chronicles the encounters he has with a number of writers, revealing the history of African American literature in the past thirty years.

   I teach Fathering Words in a senior-level college course on autobiography at the University of Southern Indiana. Readers who want more information about the author might start with his website ....




3. If I had received this book five years ago, it would have saved me five years of pain and confusion. Fathering Words is the tangible witness of a man's journey into and through his writing life. Unlike many writing memoirs, it is not a how to, or even a how, but a detatched narrative of his life as a poet. He is eerily objective about the mistakes and choices he has made, and uses occasional passages from his sister to broaden the view he gives the reader.

   I learned more about the writing process, more about the yearning that true writers feel, and more about the lack of understanding that non-artists have about the whys and wherefores. If you know an African-American man who yearns to "father words", buying this book for him will be the best show of support you can give him.




4. Fathering Words is a deeply moving memoir. Ethelbert Miller's description of his father will remain with the reader for a very long time. His decision to write the book using both his and his sister's voice is unique and it works.It's definitely a keeper.



5. This book is so beautifully written, so touchingly direct that I called Howard University to search out the author and tell him what a compelling book he had written. Anyone who is a father, about to be a father or contemplating being a father (whether African-American or not) will find this book touching in what it says about the frequently mute love between fathers and their sons. African-Americans families are often love mutes like Mr. Miller's-- too busy working, too focused on the quotidien to express love outside provision of food and shelter. Out of such silent, seemingly fallow ground, E. Ethelbert Miller heaps up words of love and power, fathering not only his own father, but his whole family in some of the most poetic prose you will ever read.

5 comments about The Carny Kid: Survival of a Young Thief.

1. Kenny spoke at the high school I work at this past fall and what the students saw was that no matter how far down the ladder of life you are there is always the possibilty of making it out. I did not see this so much as the story of the only jewish family living in Ramona Gardens as much as the story of a determin young man who dealt with his surroundings, made friends and did what most other children of families living in the projects do, try and get ahead.
   
   What struck me as ironic is the section that tells of how he and his mother going to the the Jewish relief agency for help and being turned down because, as they said, " your to needy." I wish Kenny had named that agency.
   
   I would hope that he has kept in touch with the Delgado's who opened their home, even in the projects one can find solace and warmth and that is what I saw that he received from this family. The friends you make when growing up are forever family and Kenny will always be a part of East Los Angeles family.



2. This book is enjoyable to read because the author as a kid is very likeable with an indomitable spirit. Imagine growing up the only jewish family in a mostly hispanic housing project. Kenneth ended up with this predicament because both parents were drug addicts who supported their habit by running crooked games during the summers on traveling carnivals. It seems like Kenneth was born with a survival instinct that can not be denied. Aside from trying to survive living in the projects, he also had to deal with constant poverty since the money went to his parents viens. When things seem to be looking up for Kenneth, being a football player, honor student and sorrounded by great friends, he contacts Polio and spend months recovering at a Children's hospital. It is amazing how this kid just keeps on going without so much a whine, just a sense of humour and wit that is infectious. The book is chock full of neat details about how these Midway carnival games are run and the characters around them. I thought the funniest part was when Ken gets home to his ramschackle abode in the projects during Christmas and finds it full of beautiful college girls. Apparently, it was a Jewish Sister Sorority that collected food and money to distribute among poor jewish families in the projects and seeing that Ken and his family were the only Jews living in Ramona Gardens they got to keep all the food, money and the warm wishes of a dozen college girls. Ken and his book keeps you glued and rooting for him in the next page. A really enjoyable book and to think this is a true story.



3. The Carny Kid: Survival of a Young Thief is the true-life memoir of a young Jewish boy forced to grow up in a multi-ethnic ghetto with parents who are drug users and drug dealers. One summer the father leads the family on a vagabond life as thieves traveling the carnival circuit. Yet in spite of adversity, young Kenneth Kahn develops his people skills, befriends black and Hispanic ghetto residents, uses the library as his safe haven and draws upon the advice of teachers and coaches to excel, eventually becoming a successful Los Angeles criminal defense attorney. Kahn sees no need to condemn or moralize about most facets of the gang life he grew up around; he just tells his experiences as they happened, and lets the reader judge for himself or herself. A handful of black-and-white photographs illustrate the author's tenacious and amazing journey from struggling to survive to penthouse prosperity.



4. I met the author on a flight coming back from Brazil at the beginning of this year. He was an interesting person with a great sense of humor. He sent us his book to read. I was surprised when I read his book at the horrible things he had to go through - living in the LA slums, having parents that used drugs, and finally having polio. He makes his life story very interesting and keeps you engaged throughout the story. I was very fascinated with his carnival life. We had a carnival that came though the town where I grew up on the east coast, and I enjoyed going to it. My friends told me that there had to be some scam if you could win some big prizes for just a dollar. According to Ken, this is the least of it. His life in the carnival is a great story. However, this book is much more than just carnival life. It is book about kid who had many challenges growing up and has become very successful. I can't wait for the sequel to come out.
   
   One more thing - This book should be a must read for all the kids that go to Inner city schools. Sometimes in those schools it seems like there is very little hope of ever getting to prosperity. The carnival kid should give those kids hope that if Ken could do this so can they. I am surprised that I have not heard of other people (other than sport stars) that have made it out of the slums and into success.
   
   Hope you enjoy reading this book as much as I did.



5. The human spirit is alive and well and living in Kenny Kahn! I had no expectations for the journey I would be taking when I opened this book, but while reading it, I was rapt in each step of the journey.
   
   Kahn's travels through his early years and especially his carnival "education" became my awakening from the Midwest values with which I was raised (though I will admit I have not just fallen off a turnip truck). I kept thinking how Dickensian this life appeared. I kept asking asking myself, do people really do these things? Do people really believe that it is okay to cheat and that it helps balance the world between the haves and have nots? I will never walk down the rows of carnival games and believe that I can actually win one of those adorable stuffed animals; but, I will probably still try.
   
   Though the book has a lot about carnival life and the story about Shorty is captivating; it is the life and the thoughts of the young man growing up in his challenging environment that is the intriguing story. Kahn is so touching in relaying his experiences and thoughts that at times I felt like a voyeur in a therapy session. Acts of kindness and small, incidental good deeds are remembered in detail.
   
   For those of us in education, we need to recognize how important even small details and actions are when we relate to students. Sometimes a simple smile and good morning at a classroom door may be the one shining moment in some of our students' days. Dedication and bringing all you can to support learning into the classroom is recognized by students. Kahn dedicates his book to Raymond V. Lopez, the teacher who made the difference in his life and career. Sometimes we forget that school is more than a place for learning--it is the safe haven from a threatening or uncaring outside world. Kahn reminds us of this in his book.
   
   Art Buchwald, upon being questioned about what makes a person like him funny, responded, "a very unhappy childhood". After reading Kahn's book, I know why he does stand up comedy and has a comedy routine he takes to law schools. Forget Kahn's being a highly successful and high-powered lawyer when you read this book as the only important thing you need to know about Kahn is what he shows us about the indomitable human spirit that is in all of us and how we all have the ability to impact others' lives, not necessarily with great deeds such as the cure for cancer, but with kindness that feeds the human soul.
   
   I will never take an orange and break it into its segments without thinking of Kahn and his inspiring book. You need to read the book to understand.