Biography, Autobiography, Memoir discussion

This thread is for review or discussion of anything you are reading that is not Biography, Autobiography, or Memoir.

The Death of Mrs. Westaway
Ruth Ware
5/5 stars
Hal, a single woman is living and struggling on her own as a tarot card reader when she gets a letter informing her of a relative that has died and she is to inherit part of the estate. However, she believes that she is not related to that person but still decides to go to the will reading hoping to get some of the inheritance to help her survive. As she arrives and meets the family she has second thoughts but still plans to go through with it. However, there is someone in the family who has a secret to maintain and Hal may be in the way. I flew through this book because I couldn’t wait to see how this ended!

Restarted reading Cold North Killers: Canadian Serial Murder. Trying to read at least one book a month.

Lady ♥ Belleza wrote: "Restarted reading Cold North Killers: Canadian Serial Murder. Trying to read at least one book a month."

This may be the only time so far you and I have been reading the same book at the same time.

The Heart of Things: A Midwestern Almanac by John Hildebrand
5 stars


This is a collection of articles the author has written for a magazine called Wisconsin Trails. I loved his incite into Midwest living. He talks about farming, hunting, woodlands, and a lot about what Midwest people are like. At times, it was kind of nostalgic. I would look for my by this author.

A Murder Is Announced
Agatha Christie
4/5 stars
A classic Miss Marple murder mystery!

Everything I Never Told You
Celeste Ng
4/5 stars
Ng’s story surrounds the Lee family, in particular Lydia, their daughter who has died. The story goes back and forth in time including the meeting and marriage of Marilyn, who is white and James Lee who is Chinese. Their marriage is not going well and their children struggle as the only American Asians in their town. But when their daughter dies it consumes them and threatens the family structure while they attempt to find out what happened to Lydia. Well written and hard to put down.

The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit by Michael Finkel
4 stars


Pretty incredible story about a man who basically left society to live all alone in the woods for 27 years. He had to steal from people near-by to live and at times he almost died from starvation and the elements. He would probably still be there if he hadn't been caught. I was conflicted on what his punishment should be for the stealing but think the judge made a good decision. It's too bad the subject and his family weren't more forthcoming with the author. I think it would have been a better book if we could have gotten into more of the thought process of Christopher and his family and at times it seemed like the author was almost a stalker in trying to get the information, but still an interesting book and makes you think what life would be like if you had no communication with fellow humans for a long time.

Why The Monkees Matter: Teenagers, Television and American Pop Culture by Roseanne Welch
3 stars


At times a little text-bookish, but I believe it was meant to work in conjunction with a college course. I thought it took a light comedy tv show a little too seriously, but if you loved this show I'm sure you will find the book interesting. The show still plays in reruns in my area, so I will be looking for those double intendres and secret jokes.

Koren wrote: "Why The Monkees Matter: Teenagers, Television and American Pop Culture by Roseanne Welch
3 stars
[bookcover:Why The Monkees Matter: Teenagers, Television and American Pop Culture|3..."

I remember that this was a show and remember some kind of thing about it on some cereal package or another in Canada (perhaps also the States, but someone else I said this to didn't remember that.) I know we saw it sometimes so it was on one of our two TV stations, which means that if I look this up, I'll know which US station we got before "cable" (not cable as it's known now or since who knows when, but a kind of cable that gave us more network channels).

Pied Piper
Nevil Shute
4/5 stars
Englishman John Howard, alone in life decides to take a fishing trip to France. On his way home, he is asked to escort a couple of children home to England. Unfortunately, Germany invades France just while he is trying to get the children home. Travel is very hard and along the way he picks up a few more children that desperately need to leave France. I enjoy Shute’s works and this one didn’t disappoint me. Poignant! Fiction

Inside Charlie's Chocolate Factory: The Complete Story of Willy Wonka, the Golden Ticket, and Roald Dahl's Most Famous Creation. by Lucy Margan

I read this last year but forgot to mention it. Recommend to read if you a fan of the book and movie(s)

Murder by the Book
Rex Stout
3/5 stars
An author and three people who had access to his book are murdered. When the inspector cannot solve the case he contacts Nero Wolfe and his staff to help in the investigation. Of course Wolfe prevails and this unusual case is solved. Interesting plus a fast read!

The Price of Salt
Patricia Highsmith
4/5 stars
Set in the 50’s, Therese Belivet is fresh out of school and trying to establish her career in set design. She has been working part time jobs and dating a young man who is ready to get married. But Therese is not ready to settle down. While working at a store’s toy department during Christmas she meets Carol Aird, wife and mother, who is estranged from her husband. They start to develop a friendship that becomes stronger and soon threatens Carol’s marriage. Highsmith does a great job building up the tension and you will be wondering where this will end.

See What You Made Me Do: Power, Control and Domestic Violence Jess Hill

Mostly Australian (not sure why I suddenly seem to be reading all about Australian problems lately...) but can learn some things here about Domestic abuse and why men are the perpetrators..Journalist Jess Hill does some investigating and uncovers some horrific cases.

Two types of abusers -cobras and pit bulls. A theory is that men are ashamed and taking it out on their partners. They don't know what to do with their anger. Women fear for their lives, the problem is not just the violence but coercive control - and often men aren't even getting physical but doing things like verbal abuse and keeping women captive, controlling their movements and finances. The most dangerous time is when she tries to leave because these men will stalk or come after them and kill them.

Even worse is if she tries to leave, the men threaten to hurt their children. I never got why women would leave an abusive partner or husband and then the courts decided that he gets custody or visit the children its probably WORSE that children are there alone with an abusive dad. That is why so many women stay, aside from the fact that most have nowhere to go (not sure why they don't go back to their parents...) as there are very few women's refuges and the police are not very sympathetic to domestic incidents, thinking they are 'time wasters' and not real crimes. What a screwed up justice system and police force Australia has. I saw that in NZ too, people would call the police to help and they would end up making things worse.

This book is an expose and important read for anyone trying to understand the situation and what people can do to stop it.

There's a common myth, Selina, that abusive dads are still usually good fathers. As if seeing dad treat mom like dirt were good role modelling. As if dad didn't use the kids against their moms. There are also often gaping holes in family law that make it impossible for mom to protect the kids. One astounding example crossed my transom when it came out that they were going to change the child protection law, because up until then a dad court-ordered to stay away from a child he was known to have abused still had open access to the victim's siblings.

How anyone can perpetuate that myth is beyond me. That is just not common sense at all.
I have a low view of Family Court now and judges who can't even seem to judge right. Someone is profiting from all of this and methinks its divorce lawyers and psychiatrists.

In the paper today news is that Oranga Tamariki (formerly CYFS child youth and family services) have been using armed police to remove children from their (solo) mothers. Those 'uplifts' as they are called are deeply traumatising.

If the mothers are willingly relinquishing their children to be fostered ok but if not they ought to be given reasonable warning and to know their children are in safe hands and not made to feel like criminals all over again. Cos they will do them in the middle of the night. I don't know where the dads and possibly their rationale is to stop the abusive dads coming back but in many cases its without the mothers informed consent.

Jane and Prudence
Barbara Pym
3/5 stars
Jane and Prudence are friends. Jane is the wife of a clergyman and they have just moved to a new parish. While Jane is adjusting to her new parish, Prudence, a single woman who works for a living is encouraged by Jane to settle down and perhaps marry. She is introduced to Fabian, a neighbor who has issues of his own but there is another man that Pru is attracted to. Written in 1953 but it has some surprisingly modern thoughts on relationships. Not my favorite book but it was an interesting and fast read.

Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know about the People We Don't Know
Malcolm Gladwell
5/5 stars
I am a big fan of Malcolm Gladwell and this book did not disappoint me. Gladwell discusses the differences in how people communicate and what can go wrong when our communication styles don’t match. I thought the chapter on the arrest of Sandra Bland quite disheartening and definitely a case of miscommunication.

Fiasco: A History of Hollywood's Iconic Flops
James Robert Parish
3.5/5 stars
Written in 2006, this book can certainly be updated but as a movie buff, I had seen many of the movies in the book as the author breaks down the reasons each movie failed. There are a couple of movies in the book that I did enjoyed. I liked Paint Your Wagon and Last Action Hero but I definitely agree that Showgirls, Robin William’s Popeye and Ishtar were completely terrible. This book is definitely for movie fans.

Technically not a memoir or bio but there is a lot of biographical information about people in the music industry.

Anatomy of a Song: The Oral History of 45 Iconic Hits That Changed Rock, R&B and Pop by Marc Meyers
4 stars

The author interviews the writers and singers of 45 songs that were popular from 1952 to 1991. The stories were interesting. At times it lost me a little when it got into the technical aspects of song writing. The good thing was that I had heard of most of the songs and it was fun to go to YouTube and check out what the author said.

Run Silent, Run Deep
Edward L. Beach
3.5/5 stars
Written by an actual Commodore in the Navy during WWII, Beach weaves an interesting fictional tale surrounding the navy adventures of Edward Richardson as he starts to command the submarine USS Walrus. Richardson’s crew encounter many battles but their major battle is against Captain Tateo Nakame ( Bungo Pete) who is sinking ships and subs in the Bungo Channel that is a strait separating the Japanese islands of Kyushu and Shikoku. I thought there was a nice balance between the battle descriptions and the story of Richardson and his crew. Recommended!

Rogue Lawyer by John Grisham
3 stars


I really liked this book in the beginning. I liked that it moved along quickly and didnt stay on one story line long enough to get bored with it. But towards the end that changed and I got tired of the story line with the fighter. And then it ended and it didnt really seemed like it ended. It seemed like this must be a series and there is another book. If there is I dont think I am going to rush to find it.

The World of Suzie Wong
Richard Mason
3.5/5 stars
Robert, a young artist moves to Hong Kong to concentrate on his painting career. Looking for a cheap place to live and paint, he ends up in a “brothel” where the all occupants pay by the hour except him. Robert gets to know the “girls” as friends but ends up in an up and down relationship with the beautiful Suzie. Written in 1957, it was made into a film with William Holden and Nancy Kwan.

Christmas Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella

Yep another one in the series which I somehow got hooked on...our lovable spendaholic heroine Becky Bloomwood, nee Brandon gets into all sorts of scrapes this time she's hosting Christmas. A fun light read.

Long Bright River by Liz Moore

Re-reading The Stand and continuing with The Birds and Other Stories.

Fishface wrote: "Re-reading The Stand and continuing with The Birds and Other Stories."

I'm always cautious before stepping into the dark underworld of Daphne Du Maurier now. Her novels are just too unsettling at times.
I remember reading one of hers that disturbed me for weeks after. I think it was The Parasites or was it The Scapegoat...one of them where this man was mistaken for someone else and lived a double life.

She's disturbing, all right!

The Sundial
Shirley Jackson
4/5 stars
The Hallorans’ live in an expensive mansion with an odd assortment of relatives and guests. When Aunt Fanny wanders off, she experiences a vision. Her dead father tells her of an impending disaster in which everyone but her family will be destroyed. Shirley Jackson doesn’t fail with this eerie family tale.

I finished Soldier Dogs by Maria Goodavage, after reading her other book - Secret Service Dogs.

Both are books about working dogs - their history with the US government, their work, and their bonds with their handlers. Soldier Dogs is pretty comprehensive compared with the latter title, because she was limited by the need to maintain operational security.

My review: www.goodreads.com/review/show/3226058189

What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw!
Agatha Christie
4/5 stars
Agatha Christie proves herself again as a master mystery writer in this story of Mrs. McGuillicuddy, a woman on a train who witnesses a murder of a woman on a train passing hers. The authorities dismiss her claim as they can find no other witnesses or the body. Mrs. McGuillicuddy, a friend of Mrs. Marple, tells her the strange story of what she witnessed and if she could help. Mrs. Marple, then engages a smart, young woman, Lucy Eyelesbarrow to search the area where the body could have possibly been thrown off the train. Lucy ends up working for the Crackenthorpes who live near the tracks so she can search more for the body, not knowing that the body is hidden on their property. Very enjoyable!

Julie wrote: "
What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw!
Agatha Christie
4/5 stars
Agatha Christie proves herself again as a master mystery writer ..."

McGillicuddy. That was Lucille Ball's character's maiden name on I love Lucy, wasn't it? I wonder if that was where the writer's got the name or if Agatha got it from her?

Koren wrote: "Julie wrote: "
What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw!
Agatha Christie
4/5 stars
Agatha Christie proves herself again as a master m..."

The title of the book in England was 4:50 From Paddington and the book title in US was the title I read. It was published in 1957. I Love Lucy was on 1951-1957 and that was her maiden name on the show. I don't why they have two titles for this book. Maybe they thought the US title would sell better here.

Current events have put me in the mood for mysteries. I've just read 2 titles in Carol O'Connell's Kathleen Mallory NYPD police series. Her protagonist Mallory is unusual enough to be distracting & O'Connell's writing is above average.

My review for Crime School

Www.goodreads.com/review/show/3232896298

My review for Find Me

Www.goodreads.com/review/show/3241128720

Returning to nonfiction with an easy read -
The World of Downton Abbey by Jessica Fellowes.

I like history, so I appreciated reading about the historical context for what is otherwise a soap opera, albeit with incredibly high production values.

My review: www.goodreads.com/review/show/3247074259

Finding Dorothy
Elizabeth Letts
4/5 stars
Lett’s historical fiction novel relates the life of Maud Baum, wife of Frank L. Baum who wrote The Wizard of Oz books. The novel goes back and forth between Maud’s childhood and her marriage to Frank and then years later to her relationship with the young Judy Garland who is playing Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. I especially enjoyed reading about the life of Maud and her life with Frank. This makes me want to learn more about their real life relationship. At the end there is an afterword by the author which goes over what was true and what was made up. Interestingly, it was a picture of Maud Baum and Judy Garland on the movie set that inspired Letts to write this book.

Diary of an Awesome Friendly Kid: Rowley Jefferson's Journal by Jeff Kinney


I am reading a few tween books to catch up with what children in my school are reading and to add new ones to the library. One of the more popular series is Diary of a Wimpy Kid. But it does seem like diaries in general are a popular genre...

dork diaries, ella diaries, Owl Diaries, Diary of a xxx etc

This is a spin off from the series in which the wimpy kid (Greg) best friend (Rowley) makes a diary or rather bio/memoir of his life.
anyway for most part the story is quite engaging and funny but I was aboslutely horrified at the characters of Rowley being abused, bullied, put down, ridiculed by his supposed best friend Greg and then liking it as a side kick...literally.

I was going to throw this book in the bin by the end. It made me kind of sick. Is this what young american tween boys play at on a regular basis? Bart Simpson was an angel compared to Greg. At least Bart Simpson had a heart and didnt throw Milhouse under a bus.

The Customer Is Not Always Right: Hilarious and Horrific Tales of Customers Gone Wrong by A.J. Adams
3 stars

Very short stories of rude or clueless customers from a variety of areas of customer service. I think everyone should work in customer service at some point in their lives so they can walk a mile in other's shoes. I think they could do a whole book on the medical field. There was one thing I didnt like about this book. In some stories it sounded like the customer obviously had some kind of disability. I have a son with a learning disability and he does not hesitate to pick up the phone and call customer service when he is having a problem. He has always been treated respectfully and for that I am grateful. Loved the stories where the customer was just plain rude and the worker jokingly put them in their place.

This is a quick read and if you want to read more stories you can go to the author's website https://notalwaysright.com/. You can even tell your own story.

Koren wrote: "The Customer Is Not Always Right: Hilarious and Horrific Tales of Customers Gone Wrong by A.J. Adams
3 stars

Very short stories of rude or clueless customers from a variety of areas..."

I saw this on my home page and marked it want to read--I don't know if it will be as good as Weird Things Customers Say in Bookshops, but it's worth a try :)

Crisis in the Red Zone: The Story of the Deadliest Ebola Outbreak in History, and of the Outbreaks to Come, by Richard Preston

5 horrified stars that made my hair go white

Linky to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Fishface wrote: "

[book:Crisis in the Red Zone: The Story of the Deadliest Ebola Outbr..."

Not sure if I would want to read that one. Might give me nightmares.

You can't go wrong with Richard Preston...

Fishface wrote: "You can't go wrong with Richard Preston..."

I might look for it but not too hard! LOL

The World That We Knew
Alice Hoffman
4/5 stars
Set during WWII in France, Hanni, a mother knows she has to send her daughter Lea away before she is sent to a concentration camp. She pleas with her rabbi to help but he can’t. Overhearing the conversation, the rabbi’s daughter Ettie suggests bringing forth a golem that would protect her daughter. Ava is the created creature who will look over Lea and will travel with her to a school where they help to save their Jewish students and hopefully will protect her during the occupation. I enjoy Hoffman and she spins an interesting mystical tale that imbues a tragic part of history.

Mixed Blessings by Danielle Steel

My first Danielle Steel...actully I thought it was pretty good and can see why shes so popular. She knows how to spin a yarn.

In this one three (californian) couples get married in the same day and the story follows their trials and tribulations in making a family..so the whole gamut is covered...pregnancy, abortion, infertility, sterility, surrogacy, adoption, sibling rivalry, miscarriage, etc There are enough plot twists to keep you on your toes and turning the pages.

I have just started reading Stephen Kings memoir about writing - so far so good but not that far in. Interesting approach - lots of short snippets of early life but no overall narrative yet developing. I recently finished a biography of the Poet John Clare (sadly no elation or ancestor) and then then the divine revelations of Julian or Norwich which just got too religious for me though I am interested in her overall experiences.

Enjoying Hunger.

The First Horseman by John Case

I now want to be an investigative reporter....

This book is about one who finds out that evil powers want to inflict a deadly flu virus on the entire world...the villains are a greenie cult in the US, North Koreans...and the good guy is our plucky reporter and his scientist girlfriend of course.

Spark Joy: An Illustrated Master Class on the Art of Organizing and Tidying Up by Marie Kondo

Yes, the book to read while in lockdown. And I did organise all my clothes drawers.