5 comments about Julie and Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously.

1. I rounded up. I'dve gone with a 4.5., mainly because I think that some points were belabored, but it was a hysterical memoir filled with mistakes and blunders, cursing and all-in-all a wonderful narrator. I think one of the paragraphs towards the end summed it up for me: "Sometimes, if you want to be happy, you've got to run away to Bath and marry a punk rocker. Sometimes you've got to dye your hair cobalt blue, or wander remote islands in Sicily, or cook your way through Mastering the Art of French Cooking in a year, for no good reason. Julia taught me that." In other words, life is messy. And that's if you're doing it right.



2. This lady is funny, quick witted, especially insightful and brutally honest. And I'm not talking about Julia Childs. I found this book belly-laugh funny. Even if you don't like to cook, it's a good read.



3. This blog/book is like a bag of Cheetos. It's so yummy and cheesy and you just can't stop and you really should stop and you kind of slow down and then you feel full and then you have another handful and then you fold up the bag and start to put it where you can't reach it and then you eat another handful and feel kind of yucky and then you wish you'd never seen those Cheetos ever because they weren't really that good to begin with. You don't eat Cheetos again for a long time. This book is a tidbit, not worth the money.



4. This book made me laugh and has inspired me to get on my cooking and baking spree again. The story is raw and real and I like that!
   If you love cooking and baking and aren't a food snob....you will love this book! Julie and Julia...Thank You!



5. Some of the negative reviews seem oddly fixated on the authors swearing (?) or having sex (?) or even that she wastes/spends too much on food. (Doesn't all gourmet cooking do that by definition?) Why blame that on her? She also lives in the most expensive city in the US - her salary makes her poor there, she isn't exaggerating at all. She is a young woman living in New York - duh. So she curses and drinks and talks about sex. Big deal.
   
   But on to the book - This is an unadorned look at a journey in someone's life, which happens to involve cooking and the divine Julia Child hovering over it all as sort of a cooking life-coach/ fairy godmother.....it isn't a cook book per se. The focus is on a discovery of self - it's a memoir. If you are looking for the wrong thing in a book - why blame the book? Blogs are diaries - remember them, those unvarnished outpourings of life's melodramatic struggle? That is what this is, albeit a bit more polished. I though it was intriguing and read it all in a short time - I wanted to see how she did. Maybe one needs to be at the age of self discovery or open to changes in lifes plan to see the merit.
   
   I loved it, you may not, But it is an interesting journey to read, very uplifting and real. Her writing brings you into the story, you feel a real kinship...And there's butter...lots and lots of butter.
   
   *By the way, she isn't mean to 9/11 survivors families as claimed by one review. The woman is not Ann Coulter, just someone who had a rather thankless job wherein she had to field a lot of PR complaints over things she had no control over. The rebuilding effort of the towers site is a political football in reality. Lighten up, people. You are seeing things that aren't there. And the reason that she is upset about her biological clock is that she was diagnosed with a chronic health problem, PCOS, which she will have to deal with for the rest of her life, making her very prone to infertility and certain cancers. There is no cure, no effective treatments - look it up those of you who accuse her of whining. It's no picnic.

2 comments about Racing Odysseus: A College President Becomes a Freshman Again.

1. Martin shares his life as a "Boomer Freshman", complete with rekindling of adolescent problems he had thought were long buried, with humor and candor, and meanwhile gives those of us who feel sheepish about not having actually read the Greek Classics painless synopses set against observations on the geopolitical dramas of today and the author's all-too-real concerns about his own mortality. Amazingly, he's combined all of this in a quick and satisfying read that makes you feel like you've done something to better yourself.



2. Interwoven themes of mid-life personal growth and recovery, contemporary college education commentary, and snippets of Ancient Greek literary wisdom, with a refreshing and upbeat message! This book has it all, from the serious to the humorous, as a tranformative tale of work, love, mind ,and body. It is uplifting and deftly done. The author describes a personal journey that adds new meaning to being a 'life-long learner'. And, he documents the life force of youth in current culture against a backdrop of literature that spans human history. It seems to me that he has captured the elan vital that exists across the generational divide. And, he shows us a perspective that tears down this divide, like the Fall of the Berlin Wall, to expose a very warm, human story that anyone, of any age, can relate to. It is a refreshing and uplifting read that leaves the reader a better person.
   Having visited the St. John's College campus,in Annapolis, Maryland, several times, I can attest to the flawless accuracy of his descriptions of the college setting, activities, and staff.

5 comments about One Ranger: A Memoir (Bridwell Texas History Series).

1. Great book! I love hearing first hand stories from an old Ranger. I have read both of his books and they are a must read for anyone who likes stories about the Texas Rangers.



2. Great book covering the modern Texas Rangers. But, the author would be fired these days due to the liberal press and the hands-off approach to the scum of the earth.



3. After listening to the CD's, I wanted to become a Ranger or at least a Texan! A riveting story of One Man, One Ranger, you will be totally engrossed in one man's story of his law enforcement career with the Texas Rangers as they were during the latter half of the Twentieth Century. The narration by Rex Linn is first rate and, at times, spellbinding. Don't miss this great epic! If Hollywood doesn't make this into a movie, they will miss the chance of a lifetime to chronicle this Ranger's journey as the last of the old west's Ranger's.



4. This Texas Ranger's life story is a review of how one man made a difference, and a journey through Texas history. Told in forthright, vivid prose, the book is an easy, interesting read.
   
   Mr. Jackson's experiences are things many of us have gone through. He describes what a man thinks about when life is upon him. Parents, siblings, children, bosses. His honest acknowledgement and acceptance of the turns of his life are a lesson for all in this age of feeling sorry for yourself because of hardship.
   
   Mr. Jackson ties together the history of Texas, and the hisotry of crime and criminals in Texas, with his love of the land and resulting adventures trying to explain why things happened while describing his law enforcement actions as consequences that cannot take the why's as excuses.
   
   His talent, hard work, and rugged upbringing provide Mr. Jackson with special opportunities we all would enjoy. He clearly revels in them as he spins the yarns.
   
   It was a joy to read this Texan's story. It is an American story, for all to experience.



5. Former Texas Ranger H. Joaquin Jackson is a rarity in today's world. A man of courage, an honest man, a family man, a man that can fight and love in equal measure.
   
   His book reads like a dramatic thriller and I know somewhere there's a screenplay in the works. If you're even remotly interested in Southwestern culture (especially Texas) and the history of the Rangers then buy this book!

5 comments about The Lost Years: Surviving a Mother and Daughter's Worst Nightmare.

1. This book gives an excellent look into the uncertain feelings of a teenage girl, and how her choices changed her life. Her events and life walk are depicted from her view, and then from her mother's view. There is an instant snap back to that awkward teenage time. Where do you belong, how do you fit in, and how do you cope? The popular kids (the IT group) share the same fears as the ones who seem to 'not fit in.' It does not matter the way others see you; what matters is the way you see yourself! The way teenagers find comfort is the turning point...some bully their way through and others turn to substance abuse. Either way, it is a dark place that requires the courage and will to come out of (whether one is using bad behavior or substance abuse) or you will most certainly disappear (end up all alone in this world or die). The selfish part of life allows one to foolishly think he/she is the victim and put the blame on the people around him/her. This true view story illustrates how naive reactions and destructive behaviors can shatter a family. This is a must read for parents of approaching teens. This could happen to you!



2. Having lost a sibling to alcohol and drug abuse at a very young age, I wish that this book had been available when he was struggling with his addiction. Perhaps our family could have had some knowledge of the help that was available through Al-Anon. This book is a remarkable account of courage, and I encourage any family facing these issues to pay close attention to what Constance went through to heal herself and protect her other children from this terrible disease and the horrors that go along with it. To date, I have not read anything that even comes close to touching my heart and soul the way that Kristina and Constance touched mine when I read this memoir. I could not put it down.



3. Having a brother who is a Meth addict really takes a toll on a family. This book helped in so many ways. It lets you know that there are so many families that are going through the same things you are. It also helped me realize why my brother may have become an addict and how hard it is to recover. I think anyone with an addict in the family should read this book.



4. The Lost Years is a must read for anyone in the counseling/addictions field! I was assigned to read this book for a Substance Abuse course and I was a little bit apprehensive to read another book about addictions, but this was not just another book; it was different. The Lost Years gives remarkable insight into the mind/heart/soul/motivations of a young woman addicted to alcohol and cocaine and also the mother's side of the story. I picked up this book in the morning and by the end of the afternoon, I had finished it. I truly could not put it down. A gripping story and a great read for anyone, but a MUST READ for professionals in the field. I think that I will be a better counselor and a better person for having read Kristina and her mother's story. Thank you so much for this book!



5. I have read many books on the subject of addiction from both the addicts experience and the parent. This book is the first book that spoke to the path of recovery for both parties interwoven sequentially where you could see the process to recovery for both parties and how they are really the same.

5 comments about Love Sick: One Woman's Journey through Sexual Addiction.

1. Love Sick: One Woman's Journey through Sexual Addiction is a beautifully written account of one woman's journey through sex addiction. It's not meant to be a clinical self-help book, but it does encourage intraspection. It also helps readers understand exactly what sex addiction is about. It's not about the sex. Sex is more like a drug of choice to numb the pain. Sue makes this clear in a riveting manner in this great book. I highly recommend it!



2. I read lots of books on addiction and recovery.
   
   All I kept thinking about when reading this book was - what the heck was the point of writing this book? In most cases, these types of memoirs are usually written as part of the recovery - however, this book read more like a manifesto of all the men this person has gone through.
   
   There is no warmth, no explanations, no sympathy and NO honest attempt at recovery or even of really finding out what is happening to this woman.
   
   Also, this book is sooooo slow - every once in a while, an intersting tidbit, then back to boring again.
   
   The only saving grace is a look at the 12 steps.
   
   Skip this one.



3. I loved this book. i couldnt put it down and got so attacthed to Sue. Shes a great writer. Supposdly a lifetime movie is coming out on the book sometime in April



4. Sue William Silverman's LOVE SICK is the author's first person account of her experience as a sex addict. This book written by an amateur writer wanting to share her experiences could have been excruciating. Silverman, however, is clearly a professional author, and the book is written professionally. She presents her work in segments which alternate between the retelling of episodes from her years of sexual addiction and her rehab hospitalization, in her early 40s, as she finally makes an attempt to overcome her addiction and at the same time to save her life. I feel there are both positives and negatives in the book.
   
   On the positive side, Silverman presents herself in an honest and open manner. This is commendable as it must have been very difficult to provide to a readership of strangers the truly painful details of most of her life; although it also seems to be a part of her recovery program.
   Also, I gained a lot of understanding about sexual addiction, one of the most intersting points being that, according to Silverman, she and apparently many other addicts do not actually enjoy sex; rather the addiction seems to be more about the feeling that being able to attract someone sexually validates to the addict that he or she is attractive and worthwhile. And, I confess to some personal ignorance. I was never really sure that sexual addiction was actually a real phenomenon, having believed to a great extent that it was merely a convenient excuse used by people caught cheating on their significant others. After having read LOVE SICK I no longer doubt the reality of sexual addiction.
   
   On the negative side, the writing, though professional as I mentioned, seems somewhat histrionic. I realize that this subject is highly and painfully emotional to Silverman, but from a reader's perspective I would have preferred a little less drama and more straight reporting, particularly in the segments dealing with the author's month in rehab. The parts of the book (probably two-thirds of it) which deal with Silverman's hospital experience become repetitive. I imagine that the days themselves of her stay were quite repetitve, but that does not translate particularly interestingly to a written account.
   
   To summarize,I found this book, while informative and interesting at times, to be somewhat dramatically overblown at others; and it became repetitive enough that I skimmed the hospital scenes over the last half of the book. Not bad, not real good, 3 stars.



5. I usually do not write book reviews, but I thought it was important to add a review of this book so that other people don't waste their money. This is the worst book I have ever read on addiction. Basically, the author describes her pain regarding her sexual addiction and describes scenerios she encountered in detail. The book reads more like [...] than a self-help manual. If you are looking for a self-help text or a text to assist patients with this problem, this is definitely not the right text!!!!!

5 comments about She's Not There: A Life in Two Genders.

1. From his earliest memories as a three-year old, James Finney was never without the awareness that he was "in the wrong body, living the wrong life." As a youngster, a teenager, a college student, a husband deeply in love with his wife and two children, and a professor of English at Colby College in Maine, Boylan countered that unsettling consciousness for several long decades with "an exasperated companion thought, namely, 'Don't be an idiot, You're not a girl. Get over it.'" This deeply human memoir tells how James never "got over it" and how at the age of forty-three he finally had sex reassignment surgery that completed his transgendering to Jennifer.
   
   Boylan says that her journey caused her "an almost inexpressible degree of private grief." She discovered that gender identity was far more complex than sexual attraction, cultural expectations, cross dressing, extended therapy, biology, or even genetics. It was not a choice for a certain lifestyle. She tried mightily to "accept who I wasn't," knowing that transgendering from male to female would "mean only loss and grief" for many people. In that herculean but ultimately futile quest she was aided by having inherited her mother's "boundless optimism." She counted her blessings, and especially the "greatest years of her life" in marriage to Carol and their two children. James knew full well that finally transitioning to a female would cause his beloved Carol untold grief, loss, and a sense of betrayal, and that he would bear his own grief and guilt as a result.
   
   In the end, Boylan describes her transgendering from James to Jennifer as more like an "erosion" or "forced conscription" than a decision. This story is a powerful one because of its transparency. Most people supported her; her sister has never spoken to her since she transitioned. As you would expect, her memoir is partly a plea for understanding, but even that is not compromised by polemical or partisan zeal. James transgendered to Jennifer "because I can't not." After all the explanations and anguish, she concludes, "What I have come to realize is that no matter how much light one attempts to throw on this condition, it remains a mystery" (248). At the end of the book Boylan offers thirteen questions for discussion and eight books for further reading. Her sequel memoir called I'm Looking Through You was published in 2008.



2. This incredible narrative is a profile in moral courage, revealing a psychological odyssey across four decades. Colby professor James Boylan gradually emerges as Jennifer---the woman he always knew was trapped inside a male body. As an author Boylan was both literate and successful, happily married and the father of two young boys. This journey of transformation to release his secret, feminine self is presented with humor, pathos and heart-wrenching honesty. Readers cannot but be touched by this desperate cry for acceptance in her new role-- with the sacrifice and perils of gradual, as well as sudden, femininity.
   
   
   Related in deliberately unchronological order, this intriguing narrative challenges readers' flexibility--skipping from Boylan's past to the present via seemingly unrelated flashbacks: a temporal roller coaster. Anecdotes range from outrageous incidents to excruciating emotional cruelty, but all are woven into the fabric of full disclosure with intentionality. Obviously her transformation into womanhood did not occur in a social vacuum, for her astonishing decision impacted many lives: her devoted wife, her accepting sons (from Daddy to Maddy), and her acceptance by the Colby faculty--most notably by her colleague and best buddy. Readers commiserates with the faithful wife who could only watch the gradual disappearance of her adored husband. This book, a must for any course on Gender Studies, emerges as an honest mirror into the soul of a tortured man, who became a proud woman ultimately at peace with herself. Her story challenges contemporary society, its views on gender and the individual's right to change--to achieve full emoitonal potential.



3. There's a lot to like in this book. The writing, of course, is exquisite and displays the author's professional skill. But, more important, the candor of the author's difficult journey is breath-taking. The decision to transition was unexpected and unwelcomed by the author's wife Grace, who perceived it, not unfairly, as taking away her husband. The poignance and pain of that reaction is honestly described in verbatim accounts. Those intimate scenes show the extraordinary hardships transsexuals face when trying to steer their ship toward the life they know to be true for them. This book is rare in its confrontation of social arrangements and its illustration of the high price often charged for deviance.



4. I read this book in order to learn more about transsexuality after reading True Selves because a friend of mine recently came out and I was totally blown away. Ms Boylan tries her best to sort out her pros and cons of accepting who she is throughout the book that represents her life. She suppresses and tries to accept her identity as a Male from childhood to adulthood without much success. Even though she tells side stories of others she has met along the way I do not think Ms Boylan truly recognizes that she has a privilege over others like her because of the accepting community she lives in and her wealth. Since the book is also a little self obsessed at times I think is the reason I gave this product three stars.



5. While I appreciate the courage it must have taken the author to write this story of her life I found this book difficult to follow. It jumps around in time which in this particular case made it difficult for me to really gain a sense of what the author's journey entailed. If you are looking for a book that reads like a story versus an informative resource on transgendered individuals then this might be for you. Personally I was hoping for more of the latter.

5 comments about Paris to the Moon.

1. I love Paris and I love reading books about experiences in Paris. Granted, the authors view is from quite a privileged standpoint. However, he does struggle with the every day mundane problems that make this book a good read. It is a different from the Peter Mayle books, since he does not really offer any new insights into the life of the french, but I think it is absolutely worth it if you haven't been to Paris for a while and just want to escape to it in your own mind.



2. I sipped this book much like one sips a glass of champagne. I began reading it the last week of May, and it took me until early this morning to complete it. Allow me to explain.
   
   Gopnik is a columnist for The New Yorker, which means that his style can be...well, a bit thick. His prose is often syrupy like pouring thick molasses from a jar. It's best enjoyed in small bites. I would often read only a chapter at a time to digest what I'd read: in-depth descriptions of French bureaucracy, a sit-in at the brasserie Balzar, and other complicated scenarios that required contemplation. Another problem, if you can deign to call it such, is that Gopnik failed to define certain French terms to the reader who might not be familiar with the French language.
   
   Perhaps the most enjoyable portions of the book are when Gopnik writes about his family, in particular his son Luke. Luke is an interesting character because he isn't quite American but neither is he quite French. He's held in limbo because of his expat parents. Curiously, Luke seemed to me more adult than child at times. In particular, his expressions are uniquely European. For instance, when he has a crush on a fellow schoolgirl, he says, "She's quite a dish!" What a way to describe someone, especially coming from a child of four or five!
   
   Gopnik really doesn't write much about his wife, Martha. We know that she played a large part in the decision to move from New York City to Paris, but she actually plays a minor role in his book and is mentioned surprisingly infrequently.
   
   Overall, it was an interesting piece about French culture if a bit difficult to read at times. I do think it would have been easier to read if I was a regular reader of his column at the time the family resided in Paris. And perhaps the average reader couldn't relate to just moving to Paris in a whim. But because I moved to a city on just such a whim, I felt a kinship with Gopnik and his family. It is his appreciation and attempts to understand the culture he suddenly became immersed in that caused me to continue to turn the pages.



3. This is a book for francophiles. It might be a good resource on French culture and attitudes if you will be spending an extended time traveling or working in France. But if you are looking for good literature, skip it.
   
   Should have known by just opening the cover - the first SENTENCE in the book has 9 (count 'em - NINE) commas in it. The prose is self-centered, self-conscious, and self-congratulatory.
   
   You are regaled by sentences like this one: "The lucidity of Parisian empiricism was bought at the price of the grandiosity of Parisian abstraction, and you couldn't have one without the other".
   
   Gopnik is the sort of author who thinks when he breaks a fingernail, it's significant and we need to know. You get an entire chapter devoted to a bedtime story he made up for his son, end to end.
   
   The author needs to get over himself, and the editor needs to go back to flipping burgers. Spend your valuable leisure hours reading something else!



4. PARIS TO THE MOON is a collection of essays by a NEW YORKER writer. Gopnik and his wife moved to Paris in 1995. When a young teen, he visited Paris in 1773. After the couple's child was born in 1994 they endeavored to fulfill Adam's desire to live in Paris while their son was still portable. The romance of Paris became the author's subject for his NEW YORKER pieces. There was no big story in France. There was a lot of peace amd prosperity in the world and a lot animosity directed toward the United States. When Adam Gopnik thinks of Paris he thinks of his wife Martha and his son Luke.
   
   French politicians engage in ostentatious displays of detachment. The Parisian government has a clutch of domaine prive apartments. In reality, most apartments in Paris are not available to rent in a market sense. It seems that one of the politicians lodged his entire family in various domaine prive apartments. French life in general is chock full of entitlements. North African immigrants, though, have no entree. The French elites have now decided that the cure for hidden deals is transparency. Gopnik describes a strike. France is a centralized country and anything that mainly affects Paris is a national event. French people deal with an event by pretending it isn't happening. (Picasso and Sartre pretended the Germans didn't occupy Paris.)
   
   The writer's son Luke enjoys the Luxembourg Gardens, even in November. Trying to join an American-style gym, the author discovers that the rhetoric, the cult of sport is absent in France. Talking about the bureaucracy takes the place of talking about sport. In France there is no retirement anxiety. People don't link the notion of stopping to work with stopping to live as people do in the U.S. It is believed that what France needs is its own Bill Gates. It has a philosopher, Habermas, who contends that the basis for the state is the human love of arguing.
   
   The French have been obsessed with Vichy for more than twenty-five years. Thus, they did not finally confront their past during Papon's trial in Bordeaux. Explanation turns first on romanticism, next on ideological rigor, and finally on the futility of explanation. In 1997 there was an incident at the Eiffel Tower. The French draw their identity from their jobs, the Americans from what they buy. Adam Gobnik decides that couture is romantic cartoon. Yves St. Laurent is still the favorite in 1997 of the Socialists in the government. He uses opera arias to show his clothes. The new Bibliotheque Nationale, a Mitterand grand project, is, according to Gopnik, in the totalitarian Luxe style. Other transformations of cultural sites have been undertaken at the Louvre and the Bastille Opera. Jazz, loved by the French, and Impressionism, loved by the Americans, confirm the simple physical basis of powerful emotion.
   
   Alice Waters is in Paris at some point during the writer's stay. He offers to cook dinner for her and is nervous. Her ends up cooking lamb for seven hours where four would have been appropriate. It seems that the purpose of the visit of Alice Waters to Paris is to determine the feasibility of opening a restaurant at the Musee des Arts Decoratifs at the Louvre. She has reconciled utopian politics with aristocratic cooking. The crucial unit of French social life is the cohort. Members of the cohort inhabit neutral places such as parks and cafes.
   
   The couple's daughter Olivia is born in Paris. Since Paris is beautiful, but France is not a life, the family returns to America. The book is both amusing and instructive.



5. An interesting collection of essays about family life in Paris. Gopnik's erudite, interesting descriptions of the City of Light will delight Francophiles, although his writing is fairly pretentious and pedantic at times. Nevertheless, this book is still a worthwhile read.

5 comments about Bill Bryson's African Diary.

1. Bill Bryson is the funniest travel writer working today, I believe, and even when he takes on what is an unpleasant task - visiting one of the most depressed areas of the world in order to raise funds for CARE, he does it in a hilarious way.
   
   In this short little book, Bryson not only shares with us his (by turns) funny and heartbreaking journey, we also get to meet some amazing people. The lady who works twelve-hour days in order to get a profit of some $7 or $8 - the farmer who has made a fantastic farm and is very proud of it - the villagers who come out to welcome the visitors with open arms because of a well that was built, eliminating the need for the women of the village to make a seven-hour roundtrip journey to the nearest water source. This is what it's all about - this is the magical work that CARE does with the funds that are donated.
   
   Bryson is his usual, witty self, freely confessing that the homework he did in preparing for his trip was watching Out of Africa numerous times, and he thought that he was going to be on an estate being served coffee for most of the trip. The reality was somewhat different, but still far afield from what he expected. That I not only laughed out loud but insisted on reading choice bits aloud to my husband is a testament to the talent and humor that Bryson brings to everything he does.



2. This book may disappoint you a bit if you are used to Bryson's other books. It contains the characteristic marks of Bryson's books, but it isn't as well done as the others. Something is missing. Maybe the brief format or more serious subject matter tempered things a bit? I don't know. Oh well, this book was done for a good cause. And I applaud that effort.



3. Loved the book, which is written with Bryson's characteristic humor. With a very detailed account of his short trip to Kenya, I could see what Bryson was seeing and feel what he was feeling all along the way. I would highly recommend the book for giving an eye-opening glimpse into the lives of people in Kenya. The proceeds from the book's sale go to CARE.



4. this book was short, but what can you expect when he only spends a week there? he brings the reality of africa and kenya and all of the proceeds go to CARE.



5. As someone who has spent a considerable amount of time in the country of Kenya, I enjoyed reading Bryson's thoughts and comments about the sites and sounds of East Africa, many of which I have observed myself. I just would have like to have heard more. Great read for someone who has been there because the allusions and humor definitely hit home.

3 comments about Chasing Daylight: How My Forthcoming Death Transformed My Life.

1. I found this book to be inspirational. I also found it to be painful to read. The author faces his own iminent death and does so with great dignity. There are great lessons to be learned but it is nonetheless a difficult topic and a difficult read.



2. There is a peacefulness and great joy in this heartwarming story of fully living life even in the face of death. I am grateful for having had the experience of reading it and for the reminders of how to live life with gusto.



3. This is an excellant book which we coulde all learn from on bring all our relationship to victory.

5 comments about Harlem Godfather: The Rap on my Husband, Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson.

1. I read this book in 2 days. I couldn't put it down. I was captivated. I'd always wanteed to know more about Bumpy Johnson ever since I was junior high and found out he really existed as I was a huge fan of the Cotton Club since I was a little girl. I am so glad this book was written because it dispels the rumours and lies and lays out the truth. With so much detail and information that anyone with the inclination to do the work could very well research it. I loved getting a more detailed insight not into just the obviously complex man Mr. Johnson was but also the mindset of the people of th Harlem Renassaince and learning allthese different and interesting factoids about celebriites I've heard about but never here all the true strides and accomplishments they had like the great Sarah Vaughn. I say this is information that needs to reach more people.



2. Mayme Johnson, Bumpy Johnson's wife of twenty years, decided it was time to set the record straight. In HARLEM GODFATHER, she does just that, providing readers an intimate and in depth look into the infamous Bumpy Johnson, his life and his character.
   
   Make no mistake; this isn't a wife's dreamy version of her husband's life, delicately covering the dark patches with a flowery illusion. No, by the end of the first chapter, you instinctively realize Mayme Johnson is a straight shooter and is giving you the truth, with all the fat trimmed away.
   
   Bumpy Johnson was Harlem. Period. Here, he becomes more than a conflicted character in Hoodlum or a blatant misrepresentation in American Gangster. Here, his charisma and creativeness prove he should be acknowledged with all the great bosses of the "mafia" heyday.
   
   Was he a criminal? Yes, but boy, did he run it with style and finesse, a true "Sporting Man" as Mayme Johnson calls them. It is that style, loyalty, cleverness and simple luck, which fixates mainstream America. Bumpy battled Dutch Schultz, played chess and bargained with Lucky Luciano and rubbed elbows with Hollywood stars and starlets, but would pull out his switchblade and slash a guy without a second thought.
   
   While Mayme Johnson provided an insightful and comprehensive journey of her husband's life, Karen Quinones Miller did a masterful job of seamlessly molding the pieces together in this flawless work. The amount of research, time and effort put here cannot go unnoticed. Karen Quinones Miller undoubtedly filled in the blanks, providing the political and historical climate, which enriched the telling of Bumpy Johnson's life.
   
   Mayme Johnson's candor is refreshing, and the simplicity with which she and Karen Quinones Miller deliver this complicated biography is wonderful.
   
   Reviewed by a. Kai
   for The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers



3. I really loved this Book.. After spending years searching for any information on Bumpy Johnson, I was excited to find that this book would be published. When I recieved my copy I read it in two days, and was very happy to learn about the "Real Bumpy Johnson". He was some man... The movie couldn't get it right, but this book certainly has... Congratulations to the author on a job well done...



4. Imagine sitting around on the living room floor in your grandmother's house, listening carefully as your grandmother recaps your family history. That is the feeling I got while reading Harlem Godfather: The Rap on my Husband, Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson by Mayme Johnson and Karen E Quinones Miller.
   
   Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson was born and raised in Charleston, South Carolina, where he was already making a name for himself. His parents, worrying about his safety, send him to live with his older sister, Mabel, in Harlem. This was the beginning of a new sheriff in town, and he meant business.
   
   If loyalty is what you wanted; Bumpy was the man to find. Anything happening in Harlem had to be approved by him as well, and he never ever backed downed. Especially when he knew he was right. Though his main business was numbers running and protection, he was sentenced to fifteen years in prison, on a drug trafficking charge. Something he did not see coming, for all of Harlem knew the type of man he was.
   
   Mayme Johnson wanted to set the record straight about the type of man, her husband, Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson, was. The type of people he kept company with and how he dealt with those who thought they could bring him down. At 93 years-old her memories of the things which took place, from the time Bumpy was young all the way up until the day of his death, was impressive. Though she met Bumpy in 1948, he along with his true friends shared the events of his earlier days with her, as well as things that took place when she was not there.
   
   Mayme Johnson and Karen E Quinones Miller cleared up a lot of falsified information in Harlem Godfather: The Rap on my Husband, Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson. Sometimes they flipped back and forth within the timeline, but it was not hard to keep up with. The main thing I had a concern about was the lack of proper editing. There were numerous errors of all sorts. The binding was also an issue for me. I found it hard to hold the book comfortably. All and all I still recommend Harlem Godfather: The Rap on my Husband, Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson to anyone wanting to know the truth about the real American gangster.
   
   Jennifer Coissiere
   APOOO BookClub



5. 
   I was dubious about buying this book, but I decided to go ahead and get it since I'm familiar with the author. I knew it wasn't something I would like myself, but figured my boyfriend would so it wouldn't be a waste.
   After I got it I flipped through a few pages before my giving it to my boyfriend. Well why did I do that! I was hooked from the very first page.
   This is really and truly one of the best books I've ever read.
   It tells the story of Bumpy Johnson, the gangster who ran Harlem after fighting it out with the Mafia in the thirties. I had seen the movie Hoodlum, so I knew Bumpy was a colorful character, but the movie didn't tell the half of it. This books tells Bumpy's early life, how he turned to a life of crime, and the principles he had while in the life. He wasn't like the thugs they have out here now. He was tougher than any alive, for one. But also, as tough as he was (and he was tough!) he still was a good man in a lot of ways. That's why he was so loved.
   The book tells about Bumpy's childhood in Charleston, his arrival in Harlem in 1919, and how he got started as a gangster. We also learn about a lot of the other colorful characters he ran with like Bub Hewlett and Madame Queen who were also portrayed in the movie Hoodlum, and also what eventually happened to them.
   It also tells about Bumpy's time in prison, and how he raised so much hell there the wardens were trying to figure out how to get him the heck out of prison. Can you imagine that?
   The book also tells about other Harlem characters who've never been written about. Like Dickie Wells, who was a gigilo who romanced white movie stars and got rich doing so, and then spent all his money uptown in Harlem, treating black women to a good time. He was a gigilo who never took a dime from a black woman but bilked white ones for all they had.
   And the book also talks about Red Dillard Morrison, who was almost (but only almost) as colorful as Bumpy.
   And the book gives an interesting history of Harlem that I never knew, and how the black people had to hire people like Bub Hewlett and Bumpy Johnson (they called them the Harlem Bad Men) to protect them from the whites who would come up from Hells Kitchen and try to break black heads. Bub really put a stop to that!
   There's also great stories about Bill Bojangles Robinson, Lena Horne and others. And I didn't know that Bumpy was godfather to Sydney Poitier's oldest daughter. But with all that, Bumpy was still a bad man, and a colorful one that you can't help taking a liking too. He didn't smoke or curse around women he didn't know, but he would still shoot or cut a man in a minute.
   Like another reviewer already said, the book reads like a novel, and a really good one. Even though it's more than 200 pages I flew through it and then was mad when I was finished because it was so good I didn't want to stop reading it.
   I can't say enough about this book. Like I already said, it's one of the best I've ever read. I really, really, really recommend it to everyone!