5 comments about True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess (Thomas Dunne Books).

1. Well, Leigh made have promised her publisher that she would not do a "warmed over" treatment of her subject, but that is exactly how this book comes across. She is proud to make the point that she interviewed over a hundred new sources who were willing to speak on the record about Grace, and even prouder of the fact that she was able to disclose fifteen of her sexual affairs that had never been made public before. (As if that matters.) There were only a few revelations here that caught my attention, like the fact that Grace had a tumble with the husband of one of her bridesmaids and then confessed all--leading to the complete decline of that poor woman's life--and a discussion of the extremely cruel side of Alfred Hitchcock's personality. There was virtually no discussion about Grace's death and too little examination of her complicated relationships with Rainier and the children. Also, there are regrettably few pictures in this book, most of them being publicity shots.
   
   Finally, there is too much emphasis on what seems to be extraneous. One appendix is devoted to Grace's horoscope, and another concentrates on analyzing her handwriting. Leigh also emphasizes in an epilogue about writing the book that she stayed in many of the same hotels that Grace once did, allowing her to "experience and understand her world." But did that contribute to a better book? I don't think so. For a much deeper look into the life of this beloved but controversial princess, read Randy Taraborrelli's 2003 work, Once Upon a Time.



2. This is probably the 6th biography of Grace Kelly that I have read and I felt that it was easily the weakest. In fairness to Wendy Leigh, she had clearly conducted her own research and she did present some new stories and anecdotes. However it felt like she was more pre-occupied with digging up new scandals than with presenting a cohesive picture of who Grace was. She glosses over significant events such as Grace meeting Rainier, why she decided to marry him and barely mentions Grace's death. Instead we get an obsession with every sexual relationship that Grace may or may not have had.
   
   While the book gives the impression of being well researched, when I looked up some of the footnotes it appeared that at least some of these claims were based purely on the word of someone who was the friend of a friend of someone who was now deceased. In a case like that, I feel that a reputable biographer should make it more evident that these are alleged rather than proven facts.
   
   Leigh implies that Grace had a fling with a Paris Match photographer on the ship sailing to Monaco for her wedding. Putting aside the fact that the evidence that this ever occurred is more than weak, if it were true (as Leigh insinuates), it raises all manner of questions about what that says about Grace's feelings towards Rainier and her upcoming wedding. None of those questions are dealt with. The implication throughout is that Grace never particularly loved Rainier and that she was unhappy in her marriage from start to finish. Based on the other books that I have read, this is an over-simplified and unlikely version of events.
   
   Here's a summary of the book: Grace Kelly was a successful actress who had a lot of affairs, sometimes with more than one person at a time. She looked very pretty in all her movies, even though she didn't like her jawline. She decided to marry Prince Rainier even though she didn't love him and she had a last fling only days before the wedding. She was very homesick after the wedding and Rainier started cheating on her almost immediately. She had several more affairs herself, including one with the husband of a friend. She was very unhappy. Some people thought she was icy and some people thought she was warm and friendly. She always believed she'd die in a car crash but she drove her car anyway and then she died.



3. best thing about this book is the cover photo. Poorly organized, piece-meal presentation with little new material.



4. Some new and interesting material, but I was distracted by the many misspelled words and grammatical errors - needed a good proofreader, not just spellcheck. Also irritating was quoting someone only by a first name, when no one with that name had yet been introduced into the story. Also would have benefitted from a lot more photos. I also think that Grace's charity work got a bit short-changed.



5. I enjoyed this book, it was an easy read, but I agree with those who say that it does have its flaws. There were many typos, words left out of sentences, and sentences that could have been structured better. Any good proofreader would have spotted those things. Also, for a person who led as full a life as Grace Kelly did, the picture section was sorely lacking. I have always admired her, and the book was very imformative, but it could have been better.

5 comments about The Grace Kelly Years: Princess of Monaco.

1. Just to let you know, this book is mostly photographs of Grace Kelly and very little in the way of biography. I would take a look at this AFTER or WHILE reading her bio. if that is what you're wanting.
   
   The pictures are beautiful. Many feature her clothing and some others, her scrapbook from earlier years. Some are taken by rather famous people; some are posters of her movies promoted in other countries as well as the U.S. Most are of her while several are of her family. Some photos are lifesize copies of correspondence from famous people in her life.
   
   There are none of her funeral! Odd.



2. I read in other reviews here that this is the Official Guide of the Princess Grace Exhibit in Monte Carlo. It is deservedly so. It has SO MANY pictures of Princess Grace -- both in her movie career, and as Princess of Monaco. The book has heft and weight,,,a true "coffee table" book, if ever there was one! There are wonderful pictures from the Kelly Family Album, of Grace as a child, pictures of the print advertisements she did, whilst working as a model, (though from a wealthy family, Grace Kelly preferred to pay her own way, whilst studying at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. The AMDA, by the way, does NOT allow any student to act in a speaking role, of any kind, whilst a student at the Academy...so Grace took on modeling jobs.) Various telling quotations, and actual letters, (both type-written and hand-written), from those who knew her best, and from Grace Kelly herself, are featured, as are many full page portraits, some of her without makeup of any kind, (she still looks regally radiant!)
   
   The "Hollywood" part of Grace Kelly's life takes up slightly less than half the book. The rest is devoted to her life as Princess Grace of Monaco. Her telling quote about Rainier give insight into their relationship: "When I married Prince Rainier, I married the man and not what he represented or what he was. I fell in love with him without giving thought to anything else." When Princess Grace's life is described as a "fairy tale come true", it has ALL the elements! This quite is given a full page, as is a double-portrait of Prince Rainier and Princess Grace. Interestingly, (and unlike any other royal portrait of it's kind I have ever seen), the two of them, are seen in PROFILE, one behind the other -- but the Ruler, (Rainier), is BEHIND his consort, (Grace), showing perhaps, how much he loved her, as well!
   
   Informal family portraits, with Grace, Rainier, and their children, formal and informal portraits of the Princess, her clothes, her jewels, and photos of various formal and informal occasions, (wherein are also seen other leading characters of this era -- such as Jacqueline Kennedy, Charles de Gaulke, and Pope John Paul I, amongst others, are also seen.
   (One small correction, if I may: on page 227, Princess Grace is shown to be pictured with "Queen Irene of Greece". Her Royal Highness Princess Irene of Greece is a gracious and accomplished personage -- but was always a Princess, and not -- to my knowledge anyway -- ever a Queen of Greece.) There are only two other (minor) criticisms I have of this book: 1) It is, perhaps of necessity, VERY heavy, (weighing at least four pounds), and 2) The captions of the photos -- though wonderfully revealing, are written in very small print. Perhaps this was done so that the photos, not the captions, should be the focus of a reader's attention....but still, as many of Grace's growing legion of admirers are, sadly, coming up in years, (and I'm one of them), the captions, I feel, should have been in even slightly bigger print....
   
   These small criticisms, however, do not dampen my enthusiasm at all for this otherwise perfect book -- nor would they stop me from recommending it to any other admirer of Her Serene Highness! SO much wonder is inside this book! For instance.......
   
   A detailed picture of the gold-and-pink suit which Grace Kelly wore for the civil marriage ceremony, (which preceeded the religious ceremony, and during which, she officially became a Princess), is shown -- along with a formal portrait of Grace wearing the elegant outfit. Covers of magazines, (from "Paris Match" to "Good Housekeeping"), featuring Princess Grace, (sometimes shown with a very happy Prince Rainier), are shown on one page.
   
   Towards the back of the book, are descriptions of the various rooms in the Princess Grace Exhibit, (of, as I have said, this volume is the official guidebook). Described are, the "Philadelphia Room", "New York Room", "Hollywood Room", "Hitchcock Room", "First Meeting Room", "Weddingf Room", "Ballroom", "Room of Friends", "Princess Room",
   "Nursery and Family Room", "Private Garden Room", "Secret Woman Room",
   "Glamour Room", "Patron of the Arts Room". and "Royal Room". On the page facing these last two rooms is a intriguing portrait of Princess Grace, in profile, looking out at the New York City skyline at night. It was taken by another multi-faceted, multi-talented, and intelligent woman: Gina Lollobrigita.
   
   Further towards the back of the book, is an excerpt from the book, "La Veritable Grace de Monaco", by Editions Pygmalion. giving excerpts from various chapters, and an overview of Princess Grace's life. A two page spread follows -- a thoughtful portrait of a mature Princess Grace -- on whom the passing years have left barely a mark -- staring out of a latticed window, with a grand piano on her other side. Princess Grace truly wished to return to acting, (and did, in fact, appear in several documentaries, as herself) -- but the pull of the fact that she was now a Princess, not only of Monaco, but of the Catholic Church itself, plus the desires of the people of Monaco that their princess be a princess only, and not an actress -- kept her from doing so. Yes, she did have a fairy-tale life...but in her life, as in those of most people, sacrifices had to be made to make it as it should be.
   
   A filmography of Grace Kelly follows, and after that, notes on the personal letters shown in the book. Lastly, there is a bibliography, and an index.
   
   It is a tribute indeed, to all those who produced this sumptuous book, that it is SO inclusive of every aspect of the life of Her Serene Highness, Princess Grace of Monaco. From a family photo of her at two, with her brother Jack and sister Margaret, through a photo of her on the cover of a booklet, "25 Typing Shortcuts", and some very "Marilyn Monroesque" photos of Grace in 1955, (taken, in fact, by Milton H. Greene, who took similiar photos of Ms. Monroe), through extreme close-up pictures of the various dresses Princess Grace wore through the years, through family pictures, and formal portraits, great events and small....all are here, described and pictured in the greatest of details.
   
   This is the penultimate Princess Grace book -- as well it should be. It is a treat for those fortunate enough to read it. And it is a tribute to those who created it -- most especially, the woman who lived it, Her Serene Highness, Princess Grace of Monaco.



3. lush product with beautiful previously unseen photos, but family whitewash of anything slightly controversial is ubiquitous



4. I have been searching high and low for the longest time, for books, posters etc on Grace, and have always come up with very little.
   Until, the 25th anniversary of her death.
   This really is a must for all Princess Grace fans, the presentation of the book is stunning and contains images of her I have never seen before, nearly a full picture of her to a page. Great storytelling also.
   Really, THIS is THE book you must own!
   Great price and quick international shipping too.
   Thankyou Amazon!



5. Una verdadera joya que no debe faltar a ningún admirador de la actriz y princesa más hermosa que haya habido nunca.

5 comments about Tales from the Bed: A Memoir.

1. I came across this book in a stack of books my mom had and I read it only because my dad died of ALS when 31 years ago (I was 3 at the time.) Jenifer and her sisters tell a very touching story about their life past and present and about the struggles Jenifer had with living with this horrible disease. I found it very interesting and a way I could picture what my family went through with my dad as I was too young to remember. Kudos to Jenifer and her family for their hard work in doing fundraising for Project ALS. It didn't take me long at all to get through the book!



2. In 1997, at the age of thirty-five, Jenifer Estess was forced to confront life and a debilitating illness head on. She did so with the help of her two sisters, Valerie and Meredith. Years before the diagnosis, the three sisters had made a pact with each other: "Nothing, no one will stop us." They never lost sight of that pact, nor did they lose sight of the powerful connection they had with one another even in the bleakest of times.
   
   This is a memoir of life--of a life worth celebrating and a life learning the fine points of how to live while dying. Jenifer is diagnosed with A.L.S. (amyotropic lateral sclerosis), better known to many as Lou Gehrig's Disease. She sets the stage from the beginning. We know that there will be no "happily ever after" ending, but there will be a legacy of love and concern for mankind.
   
   With a foreword by Katie Couric, we are introduced to Jenifer and her sisters as well as Project A.L.S.,the company they formed to combat this terrible disease. As Katie so eloquently puts it, "ALS robbed Jenifer of so much. But through it all, she continued to appreciate the beauty of life even when her ability to live it was so creully curtailed. ALS couldn't take away her brilliance, and the one muscle it could not destroy was her heart."
   
   This book is filled to the brim with heart. Jenifer used her heart, even when the rest of her body was failing her, to champion the cause of finding a cure for ALS. Through Project A.L.S., the sisters became political activists for stem cell research, speaking before congress along with Christopher Reeve and other well known people. They enlisted big corporate sponsors to fund research for a cure. And they kept on living despite the obvious progression of a killer disease.
   
   Jenifer is one of those uncommon people who exemplifies grace under pressure. She might have withdrawn from the world, hiding behind her failing body and the cruel fate with which she had been presented. Instead, she reached out to the world, to the healthcare community and to her friends and sisters. She was the strength behind them all, even as she could no longer care for herself or use most of her muscles.
   
   To read this book is to feel as though Jenifer has become your friend as well. In the afterword, written by Valerie Estess, we discover: "For Jenifer, having it all was a simple, exquisite recipe... Combine love, work, compassion, and you will some day, in some way, get to the mountaintop. Making the climb is the ultimate honor and privilege."
   
   Jenifer lost her battle with ALS in 2003. Her legacy lives on in the lessons she taught her sisters, this book which is a true inspiration to all who read it, and through Project A.L.S., which continues to work toward a cure not only for ALS but also for its "sister" diseases--Parkinson's, Alzheimers, and Huntington's.
   
   by Lee Ambrose
   for Story Circle Book Reviews
   reviewing books by, for, and about women



3. This was another memoir I wasn't sure I would keep reading. I am glad that I gave this book a chance. It is a very moving, sad book. I think about it fairly often.



4. I've never been moved to write a review before, but this is such a moving memoir. Jennifer's story inspired me in every way. Although I'm completely healthy, I could relate to the book. Life is hard but we all should feel lucky for what we have, for what Jennifer didn't get to have. I want to kiss my kids more than I ever did before, after reading this book. And Jennifer was a great storyteller and writer. I'd recommend this to anyone in need of a good read in front of the fire. That's the kind of book this is. Curl up and enjoy.



5. First off, I have to admire how Jenifer used her illness and influence to educate others and raise awareness and money for ALS.
   
   That said, I have to agree with the others who said that this book seemed to be heavy on the early-childhood memories and name-dropping than it was about Jenifer's self-awareness and feelings throughout her illness. I would have liked to know how more about how she created and structured Project ALS--it seemed like she just picked up the phone and called a few of her celebrity friends to organize a fundraiser. It might have been more powerful and meaningful if she had gone into more detail about her feelings and thoughts as the disease progressed.
   
   I'm glad I read this book. I certainly do appreciate the courage that Jenifer and her sisters had around ALS, but I agree with the other reviewers who could have done without the list of her many celebrity friends and childhood stories.

5 comments about Nobel Prize Women in Science: Their Lives, Struggles, and Momentous Discoveries, Second Edition.

1. McGrayne chronicles the discrimination faced by female scientists in the 20th century. Even by those who would eventually achieve the highest prize of the Nobel. She also includes biographies of a few women who never won the Nobel, but were acknowledged later by many to have merited it. Lise Meitner, of course. She was doubly disadvantaged. Being female and Jewish in Germany during the 1920s and 30s. The story of how Otto Hahn won the Physics Nobel shortly after World War 2 for work that he did jointly with her is well known to physicists.
   
   Jocelyn Bell's work on pulsars is also described. Bell's advisor would later garner the Nobel for this, though Bell made the crucial observations and deductions from those.
   
   Both these chapters can be exercises in frustration to a reader. Injustices that were never remedied. Though Bell is still alive, and so there is a chance that the Nobel committe might redress this oversight.



2. I found this book really excellent--I was coming at it from being a female scientist (chemist) myself. Good from beginning to end....no complaints!



3. Why so few? This is the question which the author put on the first page of the book. More than 300 scientists have won the Nobel Prize since its establishment,however, only 10 of them are women. Why? Why have so few women won the Nobel Prize in science? Some people might say this small number could be evidence for old prejudices. But the author tried to find a different answer through this book. This book contains stories of 15 women scientists who won the Nobel Prize or had a critical role in Nobel Prize winning works. Although this book takes the style of a biography and also describes all the scientific details quite well, it is neither just a biography nor just a science book for general readers. It is more than both of them. These women scientists had gone through lots of difficulties. All of them had experiences of being rejected from the opportunity of receiving a higher education. Most of them had more than once been mistreated and disregarded of their abilities as well as their works. And some of them, such as Rosalind Franklin, still have not received the full credit which she deserves. One might say that all the scientists who did remarkable works had faced and overcome many kinds of difficulties. But these women had to carry the added burden of being "women scientists". So, as the author pointed, another question should arise when the book is finished. Why so many? Why have so many women challenged themselves with such difficult works in spite of all the obstacles? The answer is simple. They loved science. And, through this book, the readers will find a love and a understanding for these fearless women as well as their lover,science.



4. Nobel Prize Women in Science is a superb collection of hour-long biographies of women who either won a Nobel Prize or worked on a project that won a Nobel Prize in science. The biographies are full of memorable vignettes and quotes and lucid explanations of the scientific discoveries. This reader found the book liberating because it debunked so many myths she had had about good scientists. This book makes great bedtime reading and excellent gifts for both men and women.



5. I was enthralled by this delightful, healing, and eye opening crediting over the wonder works of scientific endeavor made by woman--unsung heroines who did not flinch one bit from their true calling, what for all the drowning out and dumbing down of class ostracism inundating them and their sisters in their times. These Ladies are the truest measure of what is called a benchmark in the progress of humanity to wake up and rise to The Greatest Challenge: to free the mind, the spirit, the yoke of history's circumstance, to unite us in peace, recognition, respect, and unqualified defference to all who carry forth the Light. From my heart, Thank You Sharon Bertsch McGrayne! And for those for whom it is easier to quip, 'a woman's place is in the home, raising children and so forth....' I'll just add, we got BILLIONS of 'em.

1 comments about Marie Antoinette: Writings on the Body of a Queen.

1. I'm not sure what Goodman was trying to do here, but it didn't work. I mean, if you're interested in Marie Antoinette as a SYMBOl of women-in-high-places brought down, then this is the book for YOU....But right now I'm wanting to know about her life. Because I can't call this book a biography, an analysis of Marie Antoinette, or a review of the revolution and how it effected her, I can't recommend it. The purpose of the book is a mystery to me, except to place Antoinette in the context of women since the beginning of time. YAWN. Yet, I read it and I find myself rereading parts of it again and again. I think I have to commend it because there is thought behind the writing. The writer does give a bit of insight into Antoinette's daughter, who is the reason I began reading everything I could get my hands on about the queen...Thing is, if you want to read about women who have been scape-goated throughout the years, turn to female writers of the 1960s and early 1970s. In their hands, this book would've burned.

3 comments about "Strong Medicine" Speaks: A Native American Elder Has Her Say.

1. Great book. Story of woman native American. Thought the Lenni Lenape Indians had died out. Find out they are alive and strong in NJ.



2. I had no idea I've been waiting for words of wisdom from a Native American Elder. But Strong Medicine is (forgive me) just what the doctor ordered.
   
   Marion "Strong Medicine" Gould's story is a big one. She has suffered. She inspires. She laughs. She shares wisdom you'll want to reflect on. And she does not shrink down from saying what many of us think but might not say out loud. (Or in a book.)
   
   I'm not a history buff, but I loved learning about Strong Medicine's life--precisely because of the way Hearth presented the information. I didn't feel like I was getting a lesson. I felt like I was making a new friend. A really compassionate and wise and funny one.



3. This book is a gem! I acutally felt each story as though it were "Stong Medicine" actually speaking directly to me. I felt all emotions, happy, excited, anticipation, and sad as she told this beautiful story.
   
   Amy captured her and this book will truly capture you!
   
   What a testimony of true Native American life.

5 comments about Every Day Is a Good Day: Reflections by Contemporary Indigenous Women.

1. Amazing work! A wonderful collection about outstanding, powerful Native American Women! For anyone wanting a more complete view of native women and what they've accomplished and plan for the future.



2. Wilma Mankiller is a former principal chief of the Cherokee Ntion out in Oklahoma who has previously written an account of her chiefdom. I thought the lovely Indian woman on the front cover was her, but it is the head chief woman of the Northern Cheyenne, Gail Small. It was Audrey Shenandoah who said, "The main difference between our people and the world around us is the thankfulness and respect for the Earth, our environment, and the natural world. In our way, every day is a good day."
   
   I think we are all thankful to be alive on the earth at this time. Some don't show respect for the natural world, having spent all of their growing up years (and adult, as well) in the inner cities. Al Gore must be part Indian, as am I, because he wrote books about the environment and championed the cause in his campaign for President of the United States.
   
   It is indeed a good day every day we live. On page 202 there is a photograph of Joanne Shenandoah who is an articulate spokesperson for peace and compassion; she is an Emmy-nominated musician for her CD, 'Peacemakers Journey."
   
   A few years ago, I did my first creative writing for an online Senior Newsletter. I did not know that it was edited and mostly supported by the Native Americans until I wrote an article about being part-Indian. My mailman, a Cherokee, was most respectful to me after that; I don't know how he knew about it as he is not a senior. It was fun, but I was used and abused, let down in a big way by this group. Were I not part Cherokee, I might have ended up resenting the way I was deceived by Valerie who'd promised me a free lunch, but not once made herself known to me.
   
   I do much better with the "every day is a good day" on Amazon.com. Who needs those who use others, for whatever reason! They are no wiser than the white folks. My mother's family were from Union County (Irish, I think) and they are more honorable country people than any Native Americans.
   
   I've attended several of their PowWows here in this town and taken photos of the same costumes, year after year. Their dancing is just shuffling feet while they go round and round in a circle. The men preen and the women show their pride, especially the two white women married to the beautiful males of the Indian Nation. My son looks more Indian than the young one from the Cherokee reservation who talked with me about the red-headed, blue-eyed faux Indian at one of the PowWows.
   
   I like the lips of these Indian women as they are flat like mine. Every time I go to the movies these days, the white women on the screen have the ugly puffed up lips trying to look sexy. Sexy I call it ugly, but then I'm not a man. These women are courageous to speak out.



3. Wilma Mankiller, along with a distinguished and talented cast of other Indian women, have created a book to savor in Every Day is a Good Day. Their highly individual perspectives on spirituality, history, culture, and womanhood should appeal to men as well as women and people of all cultures. The book dispels a number of myths long held by non-Indians who may be well-meaning but poorly informed. As a woman, I was heartened by the indigenous woman's sense of herself as integral to the community, equal to the men of her tribe, happy being "brown and round" rather than caught up with negative body images and the superficial, youth-oriented and consumer-driven culture of much of mainstream America. Every writer speaks of the damage to indigenous culture wreaked by Eurocentric domination, but at the same time, these women offer a resilient, proud, and surprisingly optimistic view of today and tomorrow.
   
   This is a book to keep on hand next to your favorite chair or on your night stand. It is not literary fast food but a deep and expansive collection of thoughts to read and contemplate a chapter at a time.
   
   The book concludes with a photo and brief bio of each of the contributing women. I had a sense of familiarity with them because of their words, but their messages also taught me that I would be arrogant to think that I "knew" them. Having lived all my fifty years in the West, never more than an hour away from an Indian reservation, I thought I knew a lot about indigenous culture, but Every Day is a Good Day gave me an articulate yet gentle comeuppance. The writers reveal nuances of Native American culture. They also celebrate the profound joy to be found in life, a joy that is available for people of any religion or ethnic group.



4. should include this book. Wilma graces her story with those of her colleagues.



5. Composed and compiled by author, activist and former principal chief of the Cherokee Nation Wilma Mankiller, Every Day Is A Good Day is an anthology of writings by Native American women reflecting on such varied topics as day-to-day life, love and acceptance, governmental issues, ceremony, finding one's way through difficult times, and much more. Black-and-white photographs of the contributors are included, but the primary focus of Every Day Is A Good Day is the power of the multitude of voices, most of which are from different tribes, and each one's message to all readers. A welcome amalgamation of wisdom, warnings, and dry commentary.

5 comments about As I Crossed a Bridge of Dreams: Recollections of a Woman in 11th-Century Japan (Penguin Classics).

1. This lovely poetic lament transcends time and space.
   How often does a glimpse of the forbidden (that
   which lies beyond our cloistered grasp) create a melancholia
   that pervades our life?
   As we cross this bridge of dreams - fleeting and ethereal, we
   identify with Lady "Sarashina" and a life of desires destined to remain unfulfilled.
   
   And yet, it is precisely this unfulfillment that allows the memoirs' moody
   passion to blossom. As a result of her discontent, we readers have an opportunity
   to savour the gentle nectar of her often luminous writing.



2. This charming, brief book really does move at a dream-like pace. There are great leaps in time, with no apparent explanation. Things that should have seemed vitally important, like raising three children, are dismissed in a few scattered lines. Sarashina simply walks out on a once-in-a-lifetime imperial ceremony, but returns again and again to the sight of the moonlight.
   
   Sarashina, the pseudonym we have for her, lived and wrote in the first half of the 11th century, in Heian Japan. It is a wonderful quirk of history that this era hosted so many educated, literate women, with cloistered lives that allowed time for introspection. The authors of The Gossamer Years and Shonagon's Pillow Book lived during that same era, and even had family connections to Sarashina.
   
   She wrote this memoir near the end of her life, and seemed to use it as a package for presenting her life. Like an elegantly wrapped package, this tantalizes us by hiding the real substance inside. We read a little of her role in the imperial court, but never see into the closed society of the women's quarters. We see a courtier's career interrupted by family duties, but quite make out what those duties were. We learn that her husband was influential enough to be named regional governor, but we never see her part in his court or how that related to her imperial service. Instead, we read a few conversations, travelogues, and poems, the kind that hide more than they reveal.
   
   As a child, she had a passion for romantic stories. She used those tales to enter worlds of elegant people and beautiful places. It was only in her thirties that she came back to earth, and realized that she had let too much time go by. She did marry, but was widowed early. She did have a comfortable life as lady in waiting, but never found her way into the court's inner circle. It was almost as if her life were one of those romances, but she had been given only a minor role in it.
   
   She wrote this memoir when she was old and alone. It is beautifully literate. Still, I almost wonder whether her mind had started to wander, and wander only where the little girl's romance stories led.
   
   //wiredweird



3. Lady Sharashina lived a life of dreamy lament. It is a wonder if someone of her nature could ever be happy with what the real world could offer. Her brief moments of happiness are gained in dreams and fantasy, or tempting/dreaming the impossible, the forbidden fruit. The real world, despite living a life of relative privilege, was a never ending experience of pain to her. She took seeing the ephemeral (wabi sabi/mono no aware) aspects of life to heiights of seeing the eternal in the ephemeral the great in the small, which can be beautiful (as with Basho), but Lady Sharshina seems too idealistic and self obsessed which makes it something pitiful in the end. The real world is one of duty and lament: "veni, vedi, vici" would not be her epitaph; more like perpetual nostaligic anguish and shyness. Her regrets seem misguided.
   
   Lady Sharashina avoided popular attractions, as opposed to her near contemporary Sei Shonagon, in "The Pillow Book", who endeavored to be the attraction. Some of the scenes are unforgetable and the book is a classic for what it is: the memoirs of a dreamer. The book has one of the most poignent poetic conundrum sort of endings I can recall.
   
   The translation failed to capture all of the poems, which is to be expected; but those that were captured are brilliant.
   
   The contrast between Sei Shonagon and Lady Sharshina is one of the beauties of these books and poses an interesting psychological comparison.



4. Short, poignant and redolent of a very individual experience of life in Heian Japan, the memoirs of 'Lady Sarashina' provide a fascinating glimpse of a woman's life slightly outside of the most exalted circles of eleventh-century life. This is a highly idiosyncratic portrait of its time, concentrating on episodes important to Sarashina herself (dreams, pilgrimages, poetic exchanges) rather than to the politically-active class as a whole. The sense of chronology is vague, the structure dictated more by mood pieces and observations than straightforward diary-keeping.

   As such, this probably isn't the place to start with medieval Japanese writing, but something to try after Sei Shonagon (an altogether more ebullient and resilient character, who _is_ at the centre of things) and Lady Murasaki. Sarashina is too withdrawn to involve herself in the customary court intrigues and liaisons, and too low-status to have much impact. Instead, she occupies herself with the fantastical world of Genji and other "Tales". Her memoirs are also notable for their account of a journey through the provinces to the capital, and for highly-praised poetry that unfortunately doesn't translate particularly well.

   Ivan Morris' concise introduction sets the work in its context and discusses its significance and textual history; line drawings and unobtrusive notes further build our picture of Sarashina's world. A worthwhile purchase.




5. As I Crossed a Bridge of Dreams is a truly nonwestern work. In its tone, its narrative devices, and in the world it presents, this is a work that is clearly "other" from traditional Western fare. While sharing the same structural shell as the Western novel, its story is largely outside the limits of Western expectation.
   
   At its heart, As I Crossed a Bridge of Dreams is a song sung in retrospect by Lady Sarashina. This is a song of denied dreams that always just barely seem to fail.
   

   The one constant of the narrative is sadness. Whether Sarashina's life was really so melancholy or whether she wrote this looking back through the lens of bitterness is speculation. Yet the sadness is palpable. Sadness hovers over each scene. When happiness breaks in, it is an unexpected and short-lived guest.
   
   The narrative covers most of Sarashina's life. It starts in her childhood and leads up to her later years. She lives a very sheltered life in her father's house. So much so that it, in some ways, could be described in non-religious terms as a cloister. All the young Sarashina has to occupy her time is her love of tales and the hope of a more fulfilling future.
   
   The genesis of Sarashina's great unhappiness is the glimpse she gets of the greater life around her--a life that she is never capable of partaking in. In all her travels she is never able to break free from her own internal solitude. She will not allow herself to live in anything more than a "dream."
   
   For me, the extremely episodic nature of the book made it hard to get deeply involved as a reader. There were long spaces in this book where the author dwelt on seemingly unimportant matters. There are also quite a few brief sections where the author skips ahead a number of years. This made things difficult for me to follow on a number of occasions.
   
   The one part of the book that I enjoyed was the poetry. I greatly enjoyed the poem that the author's father had his daughter compose to send to his ex-wife. The moment was both touching and insightful into their relationship.
   
   The native Japanese worldview was wholly foreign to me. All the pilgrimages, priests, nuns, and what I would term "superstitions" struck me as convoluted and semi-capricious. The mother's taking of vows while still living within the house, yet being separated from the household, was a truly odd moment.
   
   Though sometimes hopeful, Sarashina has no true hope. In its place Sarashina resigns herself to the idea that all the bad things happening to her are the result of Karma.
   
   I have a hard time swallowing this much hopelessness. There is an endless sense of wallowing about As I Crossed a Bridge of Dreams. I wanted to talk to Sarashina--to tell her that no matter how deep the darkness, it only takes one point of light to dispel it.

   While this book may have value in being representative of the Japanese Literature of its day, it is not something I would choose to read again. The problem with As I Crossed a Bridge of Dreams is that no one ever crosses the stinking bridge.

5 comments about Eleanor Roosevelt : Volume 2 , The Defining Years, 1933-1938.

1. In the first volume of her series on Eleanor Roosevelt, Blanche Wiesen Cook, a historian and women's studies professor, introduced us to a compelling historical figure who, after years of living in passive submission to her husband and mother-in-law, had finally broken free to create her own "independent life" - a life filled with careers (teacher, writer, public speaker) and fulfilling private friendships. In volume two, Eleanor Roosevelt faces the challenge of keeping her independent life as she assumes the traditionally social (and passive) role of First Lady. "Eleanor Roosevelt: Volume Two, 1933 - 1938" contemplates Eleanor Roosevelt's life during the first five years of her husband's presidency.
   
   In her first volume on Eleanor Roosevelt, Cook took a feminist approach in asking questions about power, relationships, and identity. Unfortunately, volume two falls short of the first volume, in leaving many of these questions not only unanswered, but sometimes even unasked. Whereas the central theme of volume one was Eleanor's struggle to assert herself as an "independent power," in volume two, we are not just reading the story of Eleanor Roosevelt, but also the parallel story of her husband and his presidency, which places Eleanor Roosevelt in a dependent role as she must work her way into her husband's political circle to gain influence. In fact, too often, volume two devolves into a story of FDR's presidency and Eleanor's reaction to it, rather than the story of Eleanor Roosevelt as an individual, independent agent. Eleanor is often portrayed as dependent on FDR for power, her moods uplifted when his speeches reflect her views and depressed and cold when they don't, particularly when she is shut out from the inner circle and has to learn about what is going on from her own son. While she occasionally dissents from the administration's talking points, her writing and speaking career is now primarily aimed at advancing FDR's policies. The most disappointing example of Eleanor's capitulation to her husband is on the subject of the Holocaust, where she remains silent from 1933 to 1938. When a German refugee appeals to Eleanor Roosevelt's sense of justice, asking, "Can you really stand by and watch this? Can you stand and see us more or less all gassed? I should like to have your word, you will do something," Eleanor Roosevelt replies, "Unfortunately, in my present position I am obliged to leave all contacts with foreign governments in the hands of my husband and his advisers." Obviously, Eleanor Roosevelt does gain power within FDR's political circle, but it is never clear what the extent and significance of this power really is.
   
   Another central theme in volume one was how Eleanor Roosevelt's relationship with a new circle of feminist and lesbian friends helped her create her own life apart from FDR. After Eleanor discovered FDR's infidelity with Lucy Mercer, and they began living separately, Eleanor established her own new life at Val-Kill, a residence she shared with Nancy Cook and Marion Dickerman. In addition, Eleanor made her first true friend in Lorena Hickok, an established reporter with the Associated Press. In volume two, these relationships all dissolve, as Eleanor acrimoniously splits with Cook and Dickerman and drifts apart from Hickok. Hickok, in fact, is the key figure in volume two, as her relationship with Eleanor Roosevelt is chronicled in painful detail. While their relationship is clearly the most important in Eleanor's life during her time as First Lady, it unfortunately takes a bit of a tragic turn as Hickok gives up her job with the AP, and along with it, her self-respect, becoming dependent on Eleanor Roosevelt for work, in addition to financial and emotional support. As Hickok grows increasingly depressed and resentful of Eleanor's other friends and busy schedule, they continue to drift apart, to the point where, when they do share a vacation alone together, Eleanor is miserable, missing her work and eager to return to her life as First Lady. As Eleanor Roosevelt drifts away from the friends who were so important to her in first creating her own independent life, it is clear that her interests and priorities have changed. Her political life is now the most important thing in her life.
   
   What does this say about Eleanor Roosevelt's identity? This is the final question then left to be answered. Unfortunately, the question is never even posed to readers. Does it matter that Eleanor Roosevelt depends on her husband for power and she no longer has an independent role of her own? What does it say that she pulls Lorena Hickok into a dependent relationship where she retains all the power? Why is her public life more important to her than her private relationships? What, in fact, is her new identity? While in volume one, we are left with the image of Eleanor Roosevelt as an independent woman, pursuing her own career interests and developing her own loyal set of friends apart from FDR, in volume two, we are mostly left with an image of Eleanor Roosevelt not as an independent force, but as the First Lady, a woman who keeps a busy schedule and cares for a lot of causes and people, but none in particular.
   
   In focusing on the day-to-day details of Eleanor Roosevelt's life and FDR's administration, "Eleanor Roosevelt: Volume Two, 1933 - 1938" reads more like a timeline from a boring history text - a list of dates and facts - than a compelling biography of Eleanor Roosevelt the person, her priorities and main accomplishments. In trying to tell two stories - first, of the political movement behind the New Deal and, second, of the role Eleanor Roosevelt carves out for herself within her husband's administration - ultimately Cook fails to tell either story.



2. I have to admit that I gave up on this book. I'm hoping to find a more readable biography of Mrs. Roosevelt. Cook's style and grammar are just too jumbled for me.
   
   Look in the "look inside this book" section here and go to page 14. This is a prime example of Cook's overuse of quotes. I appreciate that she did her research, but if she was going to quote so much, she should have just included one whole article. As it is, the whole page is a mish-mash of sentances and words taken from various sources creating a confusing unreadable mess.



3. I was shocked to discover that volume 2 only covered 5 years, albeit 5 important years. However, that should serve as a caveat for a potential reader.
   
   This volume is a much harder read than volume 1 as this version grinds to a screeching halt in places. While I agree it was important to document ERs long, tortured relationship with Lorena Hickock, too much emphasis (and repetition) was placed on what looks to be a normal parting-of-the-ways as ER ascended.
   
   There are some very intriguing and thoughtful moments in this book (which makes its a worthwhile read), but they are broken up by too many abrupt harbringers of moral/political doom or redemption with sparse or no follow-up.



4. This is a very well-researched and meticulously written book. However, I never felt I got to know Eleanor Roosevelt. I found the reference to Mrs. Roosevelt throughout the book as "ER" off-putting. It put an emotional distance between the reader and the subject. While we are treated to many details of Mrs. Roosevelt's life, we are never really let in to her emotional life. BWC (the author) goes into such detail about everyone else around Mrs. Roosevelt and she tells us what happened, but she doesn't let us see things through Mrs. Roosevelt's eyes. I still have no idea what the relationship between FDR and his wife was. Nor do I really understand why she remained with Lorena Hick so long. This book really amounts to a laundry list of who, what, where. A really effective biography will let us into the personal lives of the subject and let us feel as they feel as the story of their life unfolds. I never found that emotional resonance in this account. Eleanor Roosevelt left behind copious amounts of source material. I think that the author could have done a much better job of letting us experience Mrs. Roosevelt more fully as a person and not just as a public figure with a lot on her agenda.



5. Although not being an American, I'm aware that there are many in the States who are not too fond of ER and who are very critical of her. This second volume of Blanche Wiesen Cook's series on America's former First Lady is as remarkable and absorbing as was the first. There is no doubt FDR was a man of character,courage and great personal charm and warmth, there is equally no doubt that his wife suffered great personal trauma (and embarrassment) at his refusal (doubtless for political reasons)to speak out against the racial problems (in particular lyching in the South) and the Hitlerites treament of Jews in prewar Germany and Austria whilst the US continued to trade with the Germans. The same could be said of his stance during the Spanish Civil War. Eleanor was a nag (as was mentioned here in other summaries of this book) but never without good reason.
   And all of her dire predictions came true. ER's passion for life, her beliefs, her love and respect of her husband, come through over and over again. Her ability to manipulate people, a less attractive aspect of her character - is also here for all to see (as her relationship with Lorena Hickock so aptly demonstrates).
   Was there too much of Hick in this book ? I didn't think so. The relationship was a long term, on going one. The letters were not destroyed by ER, who I believe must have realised they'd become public after her death. Finally, ER's energy levels must have been extraordinary - her ability to criss cross the country seemingly non stop was remarkable considering that travel and the mode of travel was nothing like it is today. What an absolute bonus such a partner was to FDR's re electibility !
   I look forward to the next "installment" with great anticipation.

1 comments about Girls Who Like Boys Who Like Boys: True Tales of Love, Lust, and Friendship Between Straight Women and Gay Men.

1. De la Cruz, Melissa and Tom Dolby, editors. "Girls Who Like Boys Who Like Boys: True Tales of Love, Lust, and Friendship Between Straight Women and Gay Men", Dutton, 2007.
   
   Bonding
   
   Amos Lassen and Literary Pride
   
   The new book with the long title has just as much information as the title seems to have in words. "Girls Who Like Boys..." is a wonderful new collection that looks at the bonds between straight women and gay men. It is an anthology made up of personal essays about friendships and relationships.
   Starting off with a great foreword by the author of the "Tales of the City" series, Armistead Maupin that explains the nature of the book, we are taken on a careful look at a kind of love that is not sexual in nature. Society has looked at straight women who befriend gays as covers-up, beards and what have you. What we learn here it is that neither gender nor sexuality that "dictates the tenants of our heart".
   The editors, Melissa de la Cruz and Tom Dolby looked at themselves and their own relationship and this is what prompted them to book like this together. This is the first personal book ever done on the subject and it includes the writings of 28 authors who explore their special relationships in topics from parenthood to friendship.
   Divided into five separate sections, each dealing with different aspects of relationships, the book is just that much more fun to read. Group dynamics are dealt with in the first section under the topic of "Guys and Gals". These group dynamics range from shopping sprees to be there for one another during periods of good times and of need.
   "Close Confidants" deals with one-on-one relationships that have people together and the five essays here are moving and funny.
   "A Fine Romance" contains stories of love as well as lust based on the either wrong comprehension or misinterpretation and well-meant advice as well as resignation.
   As could be expected there is a section on "Growing Up, Coming Out" which is based on friendship during the years that identity is formed and if you remember those years like I do the essays are about the guys who don't fit as well as the girls.
   Finally we come to "Fathers and Daughters, Mothers and Sons' which deals with the ties that bind. It is interesting here that there is even one essay about a mother who hopes that one of her sons will be gay so that he will have some of the qualities that she values in her gay friends.
   Taken as a whole, we get a unique picture of a straight-gay relationships. Many people do not understand that these kinds of relationships exist, especially in rural Arkansas and it is s good to have a book that explains it and does so in such a beautiful way.