5 comments about Let Me Hear Your Voice: A Family's Triumph over Autism.

1. the most honest look at her story and the trials and tribulations that came with it. EXCELLENT READ



2. Exceptional book. Not just for those with autistic family members. A must read.



3. I know aba does wonders for some forms of autism and I know this book has been a big part of getting the word out.
   Like the author I have three kids though my son's autism was present from birth. One theme that is a huge issue for many families and was absent from the book: lack of resources. We are a middle class family with one car living in a fixer-upper and debt.And compared to many we do very well. Her senario of having a nanny and paying out of pocket for lots of therapy are way way beyond our means. Our insurance does not cover any therapy and they run at $140 per hour. Anytime I work with my son I have to find & pay someone to watch my twin toddlers. This runs steep pretty fast and her descriptions of traveling, affording 20+ hours a week of kid therapy, seeing scores of doctors (a one-time evaluation by a neurologist costs 5 thousand dollars in our city) and having time for her own self and nannies just left me marveling. Most families affected by autism do struggle enourmously financially and logistically from day to day. And most kids are not as responsive as her kids were to the therapy.
   I am very happy for her success and glad she is spreading the word on ABA but I think she misses how most families have to struggle with the basics .



4. THIS IS THE SECOND BOOK I READ AFTER MY GRANDSON WAS DIAGNOSED WITH AUTISM. IT IS EXTREMELY WELL WRITTEN AND FILLED WITH INFORMATION ALL PARENTS/FAMILY AND FRIENDS OF A NEWLY DIAGNOSED AUTISTIC CHILD SHOULD KNOW. IT WILL PROVIDE YOU WITH A NEW SENSE OF HOPE AND DIRECTION TO FINDING AND PROVIDING THE BEST INTERVENTIONS/TREATMENTS TO RECOVER YOUR CHILD FROM AUTISM. I HIGHLY RECCOMMEND IT!



5. I am going to purchase this text for all new clients/parents who seek early intervention services I found this text so interesting, captivating, and enlightening, demonstrating a parent's perspective with the struggles of the diagnosis of a child's autism. Whether one agrees with her reaction or approach, she lays it all out in the open, exposing herself for others to learn from so that others may gain insight and perhaps learn. It also provides a good picture of what behavior modification is and how Applied Behavior Analysis works for those who have heard misinformation.

3 comments about Laughing Without an Accent: Adventures of an Iranian American, at Home and Abroad.

1. Got this for my wife, peeked at it, and was hooked. Dumas' family is MY family, only from somewhere else. I have uncles and aunts that are loopy (but whom I love), and sisters that I turn to when my parents do something crazy. No, there's no rocket science here - that we all tend to drive each other to distraction occasionally, and often in ways that are funny in retrospect, but a book doesn't have to be rocket science to have value and be something good and worthwhile. I was surprised by how much this book moved me, and that is rare. I liked it so much I contacted the author for an interview in The Blotter Magazine (www.blotterrag.com).



2. I just finished it. Like the Funny in Farsi it is a great book. It makes you laugh and cry at the same time. I think it should be used as a resource book about Iran at schools and colleges.
   
   Thank you Ms. Dumas and keep up the good work.



3. If you liked Funny in Farsi, then you will love this book.
   
   Another collection of short stories with insightful and funny observations.
   
   My favorite is the last chapter, where she tells the story of where she met one of the people that was taken hostage in the US embassy in Tehran years ago.

5 comments about Everyday Sacred: A Woman's Journey Home.

1. I was given a copy of this book many years ago..it sat on a shelf for a number of years before one day I picked it up and started to read it. It is one book both men and women should read. I have given it as gifts at least 60 times and just recently purchased 3 more for gifts. It truly hits the soul...if you want to do something for "yourself"...read it!! You won't be sorry.



2. "Everyday Sacred; A Woman's Journey Home" by Sue Bender is a book about the author's spiritual journey while living amidst the Amish. Bender highlights that each day, and the 'everyday' within each day is sacred. There are many opportunities to experience sacred encounters in one's life, by focusing on appreciation of simplicity and the little things in life such as enjoying a warm cup of tea or noticing the beauty of flowers in your garden. All in all 'Everyday Sacred' offers clarity, optimism and hope amidst our modern world that is all too often hectic and stressful. What I enjoyed most about 'Everyday Sacred' is that reading the book really did take me on an experiental journey into the sacred; most remarkable! Congratulations Sue Bender on writing such an inspiring and successful book.
   
   If you like 'Everyday Sacred' then you'll love NEXUS by Deborah Morrison and Arvind Singh, a successful, new age debut novel, an absorbing guide to the dazzling universe of spirituality in terms of life's joys and sorrows. NEXUS enriches our understanding of heart-centered, soulful living, enlightenment and compassion. All over the planet people of all faiths and backgrounds are suddenly experiencing an intense attraction for the wisdom and knowledge of NEXUS, a book that has already achieved top 100 status on several bestsellers lists! Nexus: A Neo Novel



3. After witnessing the recent horror (school massacre) inflicted upon the Amish community, "Everyday Sacred" is a timely reminder that they and the human spirit will endure.
   
   It reminds us to ask not what we lack, but to appreciate, daily, what we already have. My favorite quote from the book is: "Don't try for perfection. Trying to be good enough will be plenty."
   
   I am giving it my highest recommendation because it is more than good enough - it is a spell-binding read!
   
   Reginald V. Johnson, Author, "How To Be Happy, Successful And Rich"



4. It's a great description of the Spritual Cure.... but we never analyze what was wrong in the first place... it's a type of Narcissism which in her case comes into conflict with her religious values and forced her to develop her spritual walk as a cure.
   
   And it's a good cure, often overlooked because we neglect to name the Beast thats at the core.So the spiritual cure goes untried.



5. This book fell into my lap at a time when I was "most ready" to hear it, so my review may be tainted. It was so inspirational to me, and I absolutely loved the analogies and word pictures that Sue Bender used. I refer to those illustrations in my mind nearly every day. I use this book as my nightstand "go to book" when I need a spiritual pick-me-up. It is beautiful, articulate, and powerful. I have sent copies to nearly everyone I know because I believe anyone and everyone, no matter what your spiritual beliefs are, can benefit from Ms Bender's eloquent writing.

5 comments about All But My Life.

1. This book was gripping and I could not put it down until I finished it. It's so hard to believe the hardships so many endured for being Jewish. A must read. Beautifully written with rich detail.



2. I read this book a long time ago and just got done listening to the book on tape for the second time. It is the most powerful representation of the Holocaust I have found. Please read this book if you want to learn about the Holocaust from a gifted author and survivor.



3. Despite the horrors around her, and fellow prisoners dying and becoming mentally unbalanced every day, young Gerda Weissman managed to survive several Nazi camps from the late 1930s through the grisly end of World War II.
   
   Imagine being a teenager, wrenched away from your beloved parents, older brother and home -- and never seeing any of them ever again. It would be enough to make anyone unstable, not to mention bitter. Yet somehow, Gerda emerges from her horrifying ordeal stronger than she began. As her body heals in a hospital run by the Allies during the spring of 1945, Gerda begins a relationship with Kurt Klein -- a young soldier who urges her to tell her story.
   
   Now an elderly woman living in Arizona, Gerda Weissman Klein is able to see just how far she's come from the young Jewish girl living a priviledged life in Poland. Yet at the same time, her writing style allows readers to see clearly just how that same persona has managed to live such a rich, eventful life to the fullest all of these years.
   
   I've read many Holocaust memoirs, though I must say that Gerda's story is beautifully and distinctly told.



4. Every book that I've read on the holocaust contains descriptions of the horrors that man are capable of exerting on fellow man. Simultaneously, each one also differs in very interesting ways that make it unique. I appreciate Gerda Klein's simple writing, and how well she expresses her feelings and experiences.
   Books like "All But My Life" help keep the past (however dark) alive. I think that human beings have a lot to learn from such memoirs - politics, society, and human nature - it's all there. Highly recommended.



5. It's been several years since I last read 'All But My Life' but it's easily the best Holocaust survivor account I've ever read. This was on the curriculum of a class I took on the Holocaust but I was grateful they made me read it. You should be warned this becomes a very vivid, painful story, and I found it difficult in places to stop crying. It's a good illustration of why the Holocaust was so evil, and such a waste. Why did talented, loving people like this have to die? I have also read 'Night' by Elie Wiesel, which was excellent, but nothing I have read has affected me like 'All But My Life'.

5 comments about We Thought You Would Be Prettier: True Tales of the Dorkiest Girl Alive.

1. Laura Nataro's book was not, incidentally, marketed as an over-the-counter medication to clear your sinuses. It is, however, a very effective treatment, because it caused me to laugh so hard at times I cried. Apparently, the effect of such spasms also cleared my nasal passages and brought about drainage best not discussed here!
   
   In essence, We Thought You Would Be Prettier is a must-read if you appreciate some of the best on-target "OMG this could be happening to me" kind of laughs.
   
   Really, really fun! Go get it!



2. Notaro just keeps delivering fabulous funnies. I gobbled this one up as quickly as all her others. A must read author if you like your chick lit humorous.



3. This book is chock-full of guffaw-inducing anecdotes. Life sure can be hard, especially, it seems, for Laurie Notaro! It's so fun to curl up and read about her hilarous take on things. I often relate to her cynicism - I too occasionally find myself making superficial judgements of complete strangers (see guy with the "Flippy Hair") - but somehow Laurie makes it seem like a legitimate and constructive hobby. And hey, a funny, funny book was born from it.
   
   She's great with the observational humor...it's sort of like Seinfeld for chicks!



4. I just started to read this book, and I have already laughed out loud and snorted, more than once. Laurie Notaro is a very witty writer and entertaining. I've read other books of hers and it's safe to say she is my new favorite.



5. A funny, engaging collection of essays and observations on contemporary life. Laurie Notaro is, at once, an Everywoman and a totally unique character of her own. Reading her books is like listening to one of your clever, hilarious friends. Grade: A

5 comments about My Way Out: One Woman's Remarkable Journey in Overcoming Her Drinking Problem and How Her Innovative Program Can Help You or Someone You Love.

1. This book is nothing but a short booklet telling you why you should buy her $500 hypnosis CD set. There is barely any inspirational story at all behind it! DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY!



2. Do not waste your life, or your loved one's life, on this book. 'My Way Out' (MWO) puts you on the wrong path. I wasted $[...] on MYO's recommended self-hypnosis CDs, which were no help at all (and for which I cannot get a refund).
   
   I wasted hours of my time listening to these CDs, only to end up feeling despair because the CDs did nothing either to stop the cravings or end the depression. Talk about anguish! I began to believe there was 'No Way Out' for me, only for other people.
   
   It turns out I'm hypoglycemic--and if you crave alcohol, sweets or caffeine, then chances you are too, or else you are on the fast track to getting there--and the routine physical at your doctor's office doesn't test for hypoglycemia, so don't feel safe simply because your doctor tells you you check out okay. If you have energy highs and lows during the day, then like it or not, you're on your way to trouble. I didn't want to believe it either, but truth is truth.
   
   Larsen's book (Seven Weeks to Sobriety) has real answers. Self-hypnosis isn't one of them.
   
   
   .



3. I have purchased from Amazon for years and this is the first time I have been compelled to leave a comment on a product.
   This book was absolutely worth every penney. The way these women were described and how alcohol dominated their life described me exactly.
   There are suggestions made for prescriptions and supplements and I didn't need all that. Reading the book got me started on the right track.
   Thanks a million to the author.



4. I have read every book I could find on alcohol recovery and addiction and I can honestly say that this book is the one that changed my life. I never considered myself to be an alcoholic but I knew I was a problem drinker, and the beauty of this program is that it allows for either abstinence or moderated drinking. It addresses the one issue that I found lacking in so many other recovery programs and that is feeding the brain the nutrients and amino acids that we have depleted from our bodies and brains from overdrinking. I found that once I fed myself what I was lacking the cravings for alcohol reduced dramatically. The other aspects of the program described in the book have also been so important in my journey for moderation including the hypnotherapy CDs and light exercise.
   
   I cannot recommend this book enough if you are wanting to make a change in your drinking habits. Really great stuff!!



5. I think this book is a great resource for people that are serious about severly limiting or abstaining from drinking completely. The drawback for me was taking yet another medication and supplements when I already have a complicated regimin due to other medical conditions. I rated it a 4 instead of a 5 for this reason but still seems like a great program.

5 comments about Jane Austen For Dummies (For Dummies).

1. Interesting background. More indept than I thought as it included societal and economic restraints



2. Thank you Ms Ray for a book that helps readers, like myself, who are not academic but need help in understanding certain aspects of Miss Austen's world and her wonderful books. Recommend it to all but especially those who need help with the period culture. Thanks again.



3. It's a really quick read and it's a fun way to learn the very basics about the Regency era. It covers fun topics like dancing, dinners and courting and even gets into more complex topics as wills and entails. The author constantly sites examples in Austen's novels, so if you haven't read all the novels, I believe it's possible some of the information might spoil things for you.
   
   My only complaint is a few obvious typos and for some reason Edward Ferrars is called Edward Dashwood a few times(not sure if it was just overlooked because the proofreader didn't know anything about Austen or not, but it is annoying to say the least). Otherwise a great introduction to Austen's life and times.



4. This book was quite helpful and amusing to read it provided the information in a very interesting method and doesn't bore a person when reading it.



5. I have heard a great deal about Jane Austen over the years but could not get enthused about her writing. I read guides to Jane Austen with the same result. So it was with reluctance that I began reading this book when a friend loaned it to me. Suddenly, Jane Austen came to life. I could see things in Jane's writing that had eluded me for years. Joan Ray's writing style is comfortable and at the same time highly informative. If you want to have an eye opening experience about one of the great writers, I suggest that you pick up a copy of this guide. Thanks for your time.
   
   Ed Paris

5 comments about The Florist's Daughter.

1. With great reviews and glowing praise from a piece on MPR our bookclub thought this would be an excellent read. I didn't love it. OK, not one of us even liked it. I felt that overall the book could not capture my attention. We have enjoyed everything from Don't Let's Eat With The Dogs Tonight, to The Life of PI, to The Wind Up Bird Chronicles. Everyone felt that while The Florist's Daughter was well written, it was a snooze. I am glad I did not buy it here, I am glad I checked it out from the library. If you have a connection to St. Paul you would probably get a kick out of the history. Otherwise, skip it. If you want to read a great memoir, read The Glass Castle!



2. Gosh, I absolutely loved this memoir--the writing is superb and the life of St. Paul, Minnesota from the 1930s and beyond is so vivid, but with lean language--just perfect. The provincialism of the Minnesota Irish Catholics contrasted with the Minnesota Czechs/Bohemians--and each of their neighborhoods in the pecking order, is so well drawn. The contrast too between parents, one who sees life's beauty and one who sees life with suspicion. I am giving copies of this as gifts to three writers I know.



3. Moving,exquisitely written with compelling imagery although at times seemed forced( the imagery ).Richly detailed memoir.



4. Patricia Hampl's newest memoir, THE FLORIST'S DAUGHTER, opens with an indelible image. The author sits in her mother's hospital room. At her side lies her mother, who has suffered a serious stroke and is expected to die at any moment. In her lap lies a yellow notepad, on which Hampl is composing her own mother's obituary. For Hampl, whose way of dealing with the contradictions and complexities in her life has always been to write about them (in memoirs such as A ROMANTIC EDUCATION), writing a mini-biography of her mother even as the woman lays dying seems a fitting image.
   
   Of course, as Hampl extends her mother's obituary beyond the mere facts and figures of a long, full life, she casts her mind back to her own memories of her mother, to those mundane but unforgettable kitchen-table moments that form the bulk of memories but are unlikely to appear in any sort of formal obituary.
   
   Almost immediately, Hampl sets up a contrast between her mother, a biography-reading, pragmatic library clerk who balances the family's checkbook down "to the penny." Fond of telling cautionary tales and of reading her horoscope (her astrological sign and its accompanying personality traits cause Hampl to dub her mother "Leo the Lion"), Hampl's mother is an Irish Catholic, ironic, cautious and distrustful. Hampl muses that she may have inherited her own penchant for writing from time spent with her mother, who has the gift of remembering --- and describing in minute detail --- every aspect of the glamorous parties she sometimes attends. Hampl's mother certainly has a writer's eye, even if the only thing she ever published were vitriolic letters to the editor of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
   
   Or perhaps Hampl inherited her craft from her father, a quiet "man of many projects" but few words, a florist whose artistic eye, naïveté and utter lack of practicality made for beautiful floral arrangements but occasionally bad business decisions. Born into a family of Czech immigrants, Hampl's father learned both the greenhouse trade and eventually flower arranging as a young man, and excelled at both, particularly as he created whimsical, unforgettable arrangements for high-society functions: "He wanted a certain kind of formal, purchased beauty to exist, and especially for this elegance to mean something --- something good, something hopeful."
   
   In addition to these two dynamic characters, and the background presence of Hampl herself in their lives, the city of St. Paul also plays a key role in Hampl's memoir. Set in a time between Fitzgerald's tales of the city's robber barons and mansions and the more diverse population of today, Hampl's St. Paul is simultaneously romantic (especially when set in contrast with its more staid sibling, Minneapolis) and stifling to a young woman who just wants to experience the Great World.
   
   In THE FLORIST'S DAUGHTER this setting, family history and personal memoir intersect to make for a rich, rewarding meditation on how we become the people we are, why we end up where we live, why we make the choices we do. Hampl's story is at once intensely personal and surprisingly universal, as her reflections on what it means to be a lifelong child of one's parents have implications for almost all her readers.
   
   --- Reviewed by Norah Piehl



5. The Cake Bible
   How Sweet it Is!!!
   
   I've always imagined (and secretly envied) novelists who have the possibility of experiencing the pleasure of their stories come to life in the form of a movie or miniseries. I never thought there would be anything comparable for a cookbook writer but I was wrong and it has happened and in a way I never could have dreamed!
   Dear friend and esteemed Canadian colleague Marcy Goldman of "A Passion for Baking"e-mailed me the following:
   "you've been immortalized...in case you don't know - I am reading The Florist's Daughter by Patricia Hampl - a memoir - and there you are mentioned for several pages 203-217 - It is a lovely tribute - just the mention!"
   Intrigued, I ordered the book immediately from Amazon and it arrived 2 days later. For starters, I was struck by the quote on the cover written by my favorite novelist and much admired friend, Pat Conroy: "Patricia Hampl writes the best memoirs of any writer in the English language."
   I turned to page 203 and instantly was caught up in a spellbinding web of some of the most exquisitely poetic prose I've ever encountered--and it was describing my book and my cake--"the White Lilac Nostalgia" from The Cake Bible! Here's a sample:
   The Lilac Nostalgia stood at attention, its lavender medallions fastened like so many medals for valor on its soldier chest. A cake in dress uniform, in service to a sweetness worth fighting for.
   Interestingly, never once did she mention my name--I'm always referred to as author. But what could be better? The word author derives from authority. And I see that the author of The Florist's Daughter chooses each word with wise and loving care.
   Life doesn't get much sweeter than this tribute. I wonder what I could do to get her to write all the head notes for my upcoming book! Just kidding--but I must write to her care of her publisher--a note of undying gratitude for this blessing. I am now reading the book from the beginning and plan to read all of her other books--both poetry and prose.

5 comments about Anchored In Love: An Intimate Portrait of June Carter Cash.

1. I have been a fan of Johnny Cash for many years and have read numerous books and articles about him. If I could have read only one such book, I would wish it to be Anchored in Love, by John Carter Cash. This is an honest, no holds barred, sometimes painful account of not just June Carter, but of life in the Cash household in general. Reading the book, I felt as if I was a visitor in the house, getting to know the rooms, staff, life behind the scenes, and on the road. It must have been difficult, but therapeutic for John Carter to finish this work, and I thank him for doing it. Unlike other such books, there is no hidden agenda here, only the truth, whether painful or not, and it is painful at times, for all concerned, including the fans reading it, but it is an essential read for fans. Get it! Read it!. Go for the hard back if possible.
   Thank you for reading my review, and I trust you will concur, when you have read Anchored in Love.



2. I am not a country music fan but was interested in this book because it was on a bargain table. If I did like country music, I would prefer Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash, however. I have always liked Applachian music and June Carter Cash's family's music had their roots there. It was well written and painfully honest. John Carter even tells of his own problems with addictions and his struggle with overcoming them. I was surprised, shocked and disappointed to learn that June had addictions of her own even up to her death. I suppose when you are surrounded by it, you can easily give in to the temptation. However, I was surprised that she did give in to addictions because she is portrayed as a very strong Christian and God can give His children strength to overcome. All told, she is a very admirable woman and I'm glad I read the book. If you're interested in the CAsh family, I recommend 'A Man Called Cash'.



3. I enjoyed this story emensly as written by her son for the clairty,beauty,honesty and an all around excellent read. My daughter read it while visiting here and thought the same. Would recommend it to anyhone.
   
   The cover was unique and eyecatching and one I want to keep with the book as long as I have it.
   
   marlyne Brindle



4. I found John Carter Cash's book, "Anchored In Love" to be a very unbiased, honest history of his life with his family. He did not cut any corners with the truth and sharing his memories must have been painful. But, it let us know most families are what everyone calls "dysfunctional" because what is a "perfect" family? What is a "normal" family? Facing the truth is the best therapy ever and knowing God will help us through it all is our peace. Johnny Cash and June Carter were rooted in a deep love of God and each other came through loud and clear in this book. This was a wonderful book and I did listen to all the songs he mentioned in the book that I had not heard before. Thank you.



5. Thank you, John Carter, for sharing with the public the "truth" as is often hard to make public. I enjoyed this book so much I just couldn't lay it down. You had two amazing but real parents. It's not only the down-trodden that have dysfunctional lives is it? But despite their human weaknesses they were true Christians and of the best of hearts.

5 comments about Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee.

1. As a result of Shields's biography of Lee, those of us with interest in her can know much more about her background, her challenges, and her successes than we did before. My respect for her has been enhanced considerably by reading this book. It's the next best thing to Lee's own memoirs, which perhaps will yet appear.
   
   For some time I resisted acquiring and reading this volume, bothered because it was described as unauthorized by its subject. Now, after reading it, I am very grateful to its author for the thoughtful and careful effort that went into it. It is generally quite sympathetic to its subject, and I would surmise that any passages which might offend her are few and far between.
   
   In one quote attributed to a sorority member at the University of Alabama during Lee's years there, Lee is described as someone who would today be called a nerd. This nerd reader was delighted to see her so classified.
   
   A minor annoyance with the book has to do with several geographical errors, errors which should have been detected and corrected by careful editing. Their survival in print reduces somewhat the reader's confidence in the overall accuracy of the book. An example is the reference to Evergreen's location as west of Monroeville, when it is actually to the east.



2. Could those of us who have read and enjoyed To Kill a Mockingbird harbor anything other than love and respect for Nelle Harper Lee?
   
   Truthfully, yes, we could and we do. Many of us harbor (in addition to love and respect for her) a deep curiosity about her life. But how to satisfy that curiosity while maintaining a loving and respectful distance from this most private of authors? Charles J. Shields has solved this problem for us by creating a carefully researched, loving, respectful, and thoughtfully presented biography of Lee.
   
   The longest chapter in the biography is about Lee's contributions to the research for Truman Capote's best-selling "non-fiction novel," In Cold Blood. Capote, of course, was Lee's neighbor and friend when the two of them were growing up in Monroeville, Alabama, the tiny community that served as the model for fictional Maycomb in To Kill a Mockingbird. Capote figures prominently throughout the biography, especially in the chapters about Lee's childhood.
   
   The primary focus of the biography is Lee's long years of work on To Kill a Mockingbird and her subsequent realization that she would never publish another novel. To help us see those years in perspective, Shields provides extensive background on Lee's immediate family, her forebears, and her experiences coming to maturity in depression-era, small-town Alabama. He also describes her college and law school careers (she never graduated), and he quotes extensively from sorority sisters and others who matriculated with her.
   
   The book draws on an astonishing variety of sources, ranging from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation detectives that Lee met while working with Capote on In Cold Blood to a student who hand-carried the manuscript of To Kill a Mockingbird back to Lee after Lee's former high school English teacher lightly marked It up with editorial comments for Lee's consideration. The portrait of Lee that emerges shows her to be kind, generous, independent of spirit, and deeply loved and respected by those who know her.



3. Harper Lee was recently honored by President Bush with the Congressional Medal of Honor, the nation's highest honor for services to literature. Her sole classic novel, "To Kill a Mockingbird," has been ranked second to the Bible as having one of the most impact on people's lives. It is so widely read and is considered one of America's greatest novels. Unfortunately for us, Lee has never written or published another novel. You can only imagine that creating such a first classic novel that she would try again. Maybe she has in private but she has declined interviews and avoids the limelight and publicity. She makes occasional appearances like at the White House to be honored by President Bush, the memorial service for Gregory Peck who played Atticus Finch in the movie version. Besides, she has maintained a low key image despite her childhood friend and relationship, Truman Capote. There should be a book written about their relationship. They both grew up in Monroeville, Alabama and were neighbors. Nelle Harper Lee assisted in researching his classic non-fiction book, "In Cold Blood" about the Clutter murders in Kansas. After that book's publication, Lee was pretty much offended and slighted by Capoute. It might have to do with that he was resentful of her success from "To Kill a Mockingbird." While she attended his funeral, she and Truman were never as close again. He went off on the deep end and his life ended prematurely. He never recovered. Besides the point, Lee returned to life after the book and film's success. She never attended the Oscar ceremony preferring to watch it at a friend's home on television. Lee did not own a television at the time. Lee's personal life is less exciting. The author provides a disclaimer as to why she never married or about her sexual orientation. Maybe she never recovered from the unrequited love in college of one of her male professors, it's hard to imagine that this simple woman with an extraordinary mind and ability to fight much like her father did in the courtroom but with words would not find a soulmate. She now lives with her ninety one year old sister, Anne Lee, and attorney in Monroeville, Alabama. Lee has maintained her hometown identity with trips to New York City where she also maintained a residence until recently. The author paints a loving portrait of one of America's best read authors. While we know so little about her personal life, we can see that maybe she never found the right husband or man much like her father who inspired Atticus Finch. Anybody else would have been second rate, Lee never settled on that or maybe she was too shy to ask. She is polite, Southern, responsible, and has a conscience that we would expect no less from a woman who has inspired and written "To Kill a Mockingbird." She doesn't need the limelight while she maintains a normal life. While TRuman sought celebrity, fame and money as the means of his happiness, Lee has found her own sense of fulfillment in her Methodist upbringing and faith and her hometown roots. She has never left or forgotten Monroeville, ALabama who love and cherish one of our favorite writers. Anything published as "To Kill a Mockingbird" would have never been as successful or seen in the same way. You are only as good as your last book, the critics would have said.



4. According to Charles Shields in his revealing biography MOCKINGBIRD, Nelle Harper Lee should properly be regarded as a "one and a half hit wonder." Lee is of course renowned for her authorship of the perennial ninth grade classic TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, a coming of age story of social injustice that still stands up exceedingly well to rereading more than four decades beyond my first high school year. Far less well known, even after two Hollywood movies on the subject, is Ms. Lee's integral and formative role in the research and editing of Truman Capote's equally classic documentary fiction, IN COLD BLOOD.
   
   Well known as a media recluse, Ms. Lee has quietly divided her post-MOCKINGBIRD days between her hometown of Monroeville (AL) and her adopted New York City. Shields makes clear that his biographical subject resolutely refused to participate in the effort, but Shields has compensated through extensive research and interviews with seemingly anyone and everyone who has known Harper Lee. The results are about as insightful as one could accomplish without the Ms. Lee's own involvement, and the author wisely elects not to psychoanalyze his subject or speculate too intensely on her failure to produce a second novel of her own.
   
   Mr. Shields's work is replete with information about Ms. Lee's family background, her student years in law school, and her efforts to compete with an accomplished older sister for her father's approval. Most interesting are the biographical details that spill over into Ms. Lee's writing of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD. Her stern, lawyerly father A.C., who undoubtedly served as the model for Atticus Finch, her emotionally absent mother who became Jem and Scout's deceased mother in the book, her strange neighbor two houses away who became Boo Radley, her childhood association with pre-adolescent Truman Capote who became Dill, her Monroeville neighbors whose quirkly characteristics or behaviors became citizens of Maycomb, and on and on (including her use of the Kansas state motto, "Ad Astra Per Aspera," in Scout's Halloween pageant, the phrase discovered while she was working with Capote on IN COLD BLOOD).
   
   Of equal interest to Ms. Lee's childhood and collegiate background are the struggles Shields documents concerning her writing, particularly the creation of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD. Ms. Lee comes across in this rendition as far less polished and naturally capable a writer than most readers might have expected. By Shields's account, the novel might never have emerged without substantial direct coaching and guidance from editors who gave the book extraordinary attention from its earliest days. These early struggles, including the editorial rejection of a post-MOCKINGBIRD magazine article, inevitably prefigure the mystery of Ms. Lee's apparent failure to complete or publish another work. Paradoxically, Shields presents Ms. Lee as being almost more integral to the success of Capote's IN COLD BLOOD than to her own novel.
   
   Mr. Shields also devotes significant attention to the story of this classic novel's translation into a classic movie. Particularly fascinating is his account of Gregory Peck's recruitment for the lead role (Rock Hudson was the director's first choice) and Peck's subsequent heavy influence in how the story was rendered cinematically. Despite his Oscar-winning performance and the general success of the movie, it appears nevertheless that Mr. Peck single-handedly altered the movie's perspective from being coming-of-age, child-centered to being standing-brave-against-social-injustice, Atticus-centered.
   
   At times, the author's exhaustive research nearly overwhelms his subject matter in trivial and distracting details. However, that tendency stands as a minor critique relative to his success in telling the background story of an American literary and cinematic classic as well as that of its fiercely independent, iconoclastic, semi-reclusive author. For readers, viewers, and/or appreciators of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, Charles Shields's MOCKINGBIRD is a must read in its own right.



5. I love a good biography and this one is right up there with the best. It's clearly written, does not waste your time with a lot of hypothetical stuff, and the author keeps his assumptions and analyses to himself - while reporting in an interesting and involving what he has heard from those who know Harper Lee. Some biographers seem to think they are junior Freuds, and this author avoids this pitfall. Thank you! I came away feeling I would like Harper Lee, I got an understanding of her and how she came to write this book - and I also get why she hasn't written another. Nothing big, or life changing - just life went along and somehow the time and attention required to write a novel just never got put together again. Makes sense to me. I liked that the people interviewed were quoted extensively and not interpreted - I realize I'm being redundant - but biographers who analyze instead of reporting give me hives. Truman Capote was not a nice man, and I'm glad that we finally got the true scoop on his involvement with "To Kill A Mockingbird" - darned little - and her input into "In Cold Blood" - a whole lot. The rumors that he actually wrote "To Kill A Mockingbird" are shown to be absurd, and really, does anyone think that self involved little twerp wouldn't have been all over the media if actually had? He never won the Pulitzer himself, and certainly would have made sure to get credit for such an important book had he actually had anything to do with it. Don't miss out on this book. It's a good read and absolutely fascinating.