Sunday Salon: No More Thrillers for a Month

 Maybe my last thriller for a month or so....I've decided to concentrate on nonfiction books and more literary novels, moving away from psych thrillers and mysteries for a time. It's Lent and I have to give us something I really, really like! But maybe I'll be surprised and enjoy other genres for a change. 

In the Name of Truth is the 8th in a series of 9 crime novels, so far, by Viveca Sten, set in the Swedish archipelago and the island of Sandhamn. I have one more to read, the 4th,  before the next book comes out later this year. She has signed a contract for three more Sandhamn books, till 2023! 

Books I intend to read during the next month:

Savage Feast, February 26th 2019, Harper

Genre: family memoir

The Invisible History of the Human Race by Christine Kenneally, October 9, 2014, Viking
How the history of the human race shapes us as individuals

Genre: nonfiction, history

Unsheltered by Barbara Kingsolver,  October 16, 2018, Harper
Genre: literary fiction

Bread and Salt: Stories by Valerie Miner, September 5, 2020, Whitepoint Press

Climb: Leaving Safe and Finding Strength on 100 Summits in Japan by 

Susan Spann, January 2020, Prometheus Books

Genre: travel memoir 

 

Alexander von Humboldt: How the Most Famous Scientist of the Romantic Age Found the Soul of Nature

by 

Maren Meinhardt

Genre: natural history, biography

The Lost Boys of Montauk by Amanda M. Fairbanks, May 2021, Gallery Books

Genre: memoirs and biography, non fiction

Copy courtesy of Netgalley

What are you reading this week? 

Memes: The Sunday Post hosted by The Caffeinated Bookreviewer. Also,  It's Monday: What Are You Reading, and Sunday Salon

Krazy: The Black and White World of George Herriman by Michael Tisserand: First Chapter

Krazy: The Black and White World of George Herriman by Michael Tisserand, December 6, 2016, Harper

First paragraph, first chapter:
The San Francisco Sunday Examiner and Chronicle landed on doorsteps on August 22, 1971, on what would have been George Herriman's ninety-first birthday. Inside the paper was a story by San Francisco State University professor, Arthur Asa Berger, detailing his attempt to write an entry on Herriman for the Dictionary of American Biography. In his research, Berger had obtained information from the New Orleans health department about a child of that name born in 1880. But, Berger decided, the child had to be a different George Herriman. The reason? The birth certificate was marked "col." for "colored." The cartoonist George Herriman, Berger believed, was white.

Krazy is the biography of the cartoonist George Herriman (1880-1944), creator of the successful comic strip, Krazy Kat. "Michael Tisserand brings this little-understood figure to vivid life, paying homage to a visionary artist who helped shape modern culture."

The book reveals that the cartoonist did not disclose his African-American ancestry in order to be able to continue his art and his work for a newspaper syndicate in the early 20th century.

A timely post to honor Martin Luther King Jr. Day, yesterday.

Meme: Every Tuesday First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros are hosted by Bibliophile By the Sea. 
 

First Chapter: Adolfo KIaminsky, A Forger's Life by Sarah Kaminsky

Biography, memoir, history - the life of Adolfo Kaminsky

Adolfo Kaminsky: A Forger's Life, by Sarah Kaminsky, DoppelHouse Press, 2016.

First paragraph:
Prologue

"Since you want to know everything, tell me what you think you know about my life. For example, when did you learn that I was in the Resistance?"

To be honest, I don't know. Even less about you being a forger. If we'd stayed in Algeria I might never have known about the Second World War. For me you were the Mujahid, as they say."

"But afterwards, in France, you knew?"

"Not right away. You didn't talk to us about it. I grew up thinking I was the daughter of a social caseworker who helped rehabilitate young delinquents, found work for them, taught them photography. But by keeping my ears open when the grown-ups were talking I got some hints, in bits and pieces...."

Book description: 
Best-selling author Sarah Kaminsky takes readers through her father Adolfo Kaminsky's perilous and clandestine career as a real-life forger for the French Resistance, the FLN, and numerous other freedom movements of the twentieth century. (publisher)

Based on the first paragraphs in the Prologue, would you keep reading?

Meme: Every Tuesday First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros are hosted by Bibliophile By the Sea. Share the first paragraph sometimes two, of a book you are reading or plan to read soon.

Sunday Salon: Mockingbird by Charles J. Shields

Welcome to the Sunday Salon where bloggers share their reading each week. Visit The Sunday Post hosted by The Caffeinated Bookreviewer.
Also visit Mailbox Monday and It's Monday, What Are You Reading? hosted by Book Date. 

They are still forecasting a bit of frost and a slow moving cold spell, in the middle of May! Guess that's why they don't recommend planting annuals till after Memorial Day, May 30. We have had to take out and bring in our potted plants at night, depending on the temps.

A lovely new book I am reading right now:

Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee: from Scout to Go Set a Watchman by Charles J. Shields, published April 26, 2016 by Henry Holt & Co. An extensively revised and updated edition of the bestselling biography of Harper Lee, reframed from the perspective of the recent publication of Go Set a Watchman. 

Thr first four British crime novels featuring Detective Helen Grace, by M. J.Arlidge that I'm eager to get into, starting with #1. Hope they are not too noir.  

A surprise win:

The Wangs vs the World by Jade Chang, to be released October 4, 2016 by HarperAvenue. 

What's on your reading desk this week? 

First Chapter: The Last Goodnight by Howard Blum

Bibliophile By the Sea hosts First Chapter, First Paragraph every Tuesday. Share the first paragraph(s) of your current read or book interest, with information for readers

The Last Goodnight: a World War II Story of Espionage, Adventure & Betrayal by Howard Blum, to be released April 12, 2016 by Harper. The book is described as a "biography of Betty Pack, the dazzling American debutante who became an Allied spy during WWII and was hailed by OSS chief General “Wild Bill" Donovan as “the greatest unsung heroine of the war.” 

First paragraph, first chapter:

Betty Pack had planned her escape from the castle with great care. Too often impulsive - her greatest fault, she would frequently concede - she had deliberately plotted this operation with the long-dormant discipline acquired during her dangerous time decades ago in the field. Yet on the blustery morning of March 1, 1963, Betty, otherwise known in the tiny village in the French Pyrenees that lay just beyond the stone walls of the ancient castle as Mme Brousse, the American-born chatelaine of Castelnou, and who in a previous life had been known to an even smaller circle as the agent code-named Cynthia, was having doubts. 

Based on the opening paragraph, would you read on?

Books for Upstairs and Downstairs

I have a mystery novel for reading upstairs, bedtime reading, and for when I wake up too early in the morning. And there is another book downstairs that I'd rather not take up and down the stairs.

My upstairs read is:

Bear Bait: a Summer Westin Mystery by Pamela Beason, to be released October 2, 2012.

A lover of the great outdoors, albeit from an armchair, I enjoyed the first book in the series, Endangered, and am liking this one with Summer Westin as a biologist, volunteer, and amateur sleuth in the National Park Forest in Olympic National Park, the Pacific Northwest.



My downstairs book is quite different.
The Devil Soldier: The Story of Frederick Townsend Ward, the Most Honored and Controversial American in Chinese History is a biography of  an American soldier of fortune from Salem, Mass. who fought in China in the mid 19th century, on the side of the Chinese emperor and against the Taiping rebels.

The book describes The Devil Soldier as a "compelling adventure story and an important piece of Chinese and American history."

It was first published January 8, 1992 by Random House.

Which book will I'll finish first?

The Real Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait of Queen Elizabeth II by Andrew Marr

Title: The Real Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait of Queen Elizabeth II

Author: Andrew Marr
Publisher: Henry Holt & Co., January 3, 2012

"Why should Americans be interested in Queen Elizabeth II, monarch of the United Kingdom and fifteen other countries, from Canada and Australia to tiny Tuvalu? It is a good question. She is a kind of anti-celebrity, a woman happiest in scarf, old coat and rubber boots, out with her dogs or horses. Thought enormously wealthy, she eats frugally, keeping her breakfast cereals in plastic boxes and switching off unnecessary lights as she passes through rooms....Her formal power is very small, and almost entirely irrelevant to the lives of those who are her subjects. (Preface to the U.S. Edition)

In time for the celebration of the Queen's 60th anniversary as Britain's monarch, here is Andrew Marr's biography of  Elizabeth II.

"She is a small woman with a globally familiar face, a hundred-carat smile - when she chooses to turn it on - and a thousand years of history at her back. (Prologue: What the Queen Does)

Publisher's description: A very personal biography of a woman who may be the world's last great queen, published to coincide with the sixtieth anniversary of her reign. Elizabeth II, one of England's longest-reigning monarchs, is an enigma.

Andrew Marr tells us the fascinating story of the real Elizabeth. Born shortly before the Depression, Elizabeth grew up during World War II and became queen because of the shocking abdication of her uncle and the early death of her father. Only twenty-five when she ascended to the throne, she has been at the apex of the British state for nearly six decades. Brought up to regard family values as sacred, she has seen a steady stream of family secrets poured into the open. Yet she has never failed to carry out her duties, and she has never said a word about any of the troubles she has endured.

About the author: Andrew Marr is an award-winning journalist and best-selling author. His best-known book is A History of Modern Britain. He lives in London.

Thanks to the publisher for a complimentary review/feature copy of this book.

Book Feature: Katy Perry, The Unauthorized Biography by Alice Montgomery

Many books have been written about pop star Katy Perry. This is the latest, an unofficial biography of the singer from California.

Opening sentences:
Santa Barbara, 1984
When a really big new star springs out of the show business firmament, it's tempting to look back to their early childhood in order to find some clue as to what inspired their talent, drive to succeed and ability to stand out in a  vastly competitive world. Sometimes the clues are there; sometimes they're not, but it's difficult to think of a single major pop sensation who's experienced the same kind of childhood as Katy Perry, which was happy, secure and seemed to set her up for life - though not as a controversial pop star married to an equally controversial comedian=turned=actor. The contrast between Katy's past and present couldn't be more stark.

Title: Katy Perry: The Unofficial Biography
Author: Alice Montgomery
Hardcover: 288 pages
Publisher: Michael Joseph (September 15, 2011)

Book description: Ever since the international chart-topping hit, "I Kissed a Girl", Katy Perry hasn't stopped making headlines. From reaching number one in charts worldwide to selling out concerts around the globe, her phenomenal success has propelled her to the A-list.

But it didn't always seem like she was destined for stardom. Brought up in a deeply religious community, Katy was allowed to listen only to church music. However, with her astounding musical gift, along with plenty of willpower, Katy was determined to follow her dream. Her rise to the top was cemented in 2010, when after a flurry of media gossip, she married the most controversial figure on British TV - Russell Brand. Bestselling biographer Alice Montgomery traces Katy's steps to stardom from her choir girl beginnings to her breakthrough in the music business and her secret wedding ceremony in India, to reveal the intimate story behind the most exciting and unpredictable pop star around. (from book cover)

About the author: Alice Montgomery is a freelance writer living and working in London. She writes under a pseudonym and has written other biographies, including Susan Boyle: Dreams Can Come True.

A copy of this book was sent  to me by the publisher for possible review/feature.

Pearl S. Buck's biography: Burying the Bones: Pearl Buck in China

Burying The Bones: Pearl Buck in China (Import) by Hilary Spurling printed by Profile Boooks, Ltd. in England, 2010.

Publisher's description:

"This is a thrilling portrait of the extraordinary childhood of Pearl Buck, the now-forgotten bestselling Nobel Prize winning novelist. Pearl Buck was raised in China by her American parents, Presbyterian missionaries from Virginia. Blonde and blue-eyed she looked startlingly foreign, but felt as at home as her Chinese companions. She ran free on the grave-littered grasslands behind her house, often stumbling across the tiny bones of baby girls who had been suffocated at birth. Buck's father was a terrifying figure, with a maniacal zeal for religious conversion - a passion rarely shared by the local communities he targeted. He drained the family's budget for his Chinese translation of the New Testament, while his aggrieved, long-suffering wife did her utmost to create a homely environment for her children, several of whom died tragically young. Pearl Buck would eventually rise to eminence in America as a bestselling author, but in this startlingly original biography, Spurling recounts with elegance and great insight her unspeakable upbringing in a China that was virtually unknown to the West."

A review of this new book describes it as a "creative biography" of author Pearl S. Buck. The review is by Elaine Showalter in the Literary Times: Review of Burying the Bones, a biography.

Anchee Min's book, Pearl of China: A Novel is a fictional account of Pearl Buck's growing up in China and her friendship with a Chinese girl her age, Spurling's book is a biography, but both books describe the turbulent times in China in which Pearl Buck grew up. Here is my review of Pearl of China.

Challenge: China Reading Challenge,

 

New Book: Deconstructing Sammy by Matt Birkbeck

Received from the author for review, a Harper Collins paperback edition just available Sept. 1, on the life of legendary singer, Sammy Davis Jr.

Description from the publisher:

Award-winning investigative journalist Matt Birkbeck delivers a stunning work of reportage that is equal parts cultural history, celebrity biography, and ultimately, a shocking behind-the-scenes look at the world of Sammy Davis, Jr.

Description from Goodreads:

Adored by millions, Sammy Davis Jr. was considered an entertainment icon and a national treasure. But despite lifetime earnings that topped $50 million, Sammy died in 1990 near bankruptcy....

Deconstructing Sammy is the extraordinary story of an international celebrity whose outsize talent couldn't save him from himself.

Harper Paperbacks
304 pages
ISBN: 978-0-06145-067-9

Watch for my later review!

Book Review: Lizzi & Fredl, A Perilous Journey of Love and Faith

Lizzi and Fredl is a detailed and touching memoir and history recorded by William B. Stanford of California, who wrote down and compiled information from his parents, Lizzi and Fredl Steiner about their lives before, during, and after WWII.

The couple left their home in Austria in 1938 to escape the encroaching threat of Nazism, only to find themselves in danger in France, the country where they had sought refuge. Lizzi and Fredl barely escaped with their lives and only much later revealed their full stories to their son, William Stanford.

The publisher's description:

"Twenty-seven-year-old Fredl is an accomplished master jeweler, while twenty-six-year-old Lizzi is a professional dressmaker. When Fredl receives papers ordering him to Munich, Germany, to serve the Nazis in their war preparations, the couple knows they have no choice: they must leave Austria. As Hitler and his troops gain force in their homeland and annex Austria, Lizzi and Fredl endure a harrowing flight to France, uncertain whether they will ever see their country again.

But France holds no safety for them. Fredl is captured by French Nazi sympathizers and must outwit his captors to survive in Vichy-controlled concentration and labor camps. Separated from Fredl, Lizzi evades arrest and relies on her guile and chutzpah to search for her beloved husband.

What follows is an incredible seven-year odyssey filled with danger and endurance. From their long, arduous journey to Paris to Fredl's unbelievable rescue from a train bound for a Nazi death camp, Lizzi and Fredl delivers a remarkable true story of courage, faith, and overwhelming love."

A news release from Kelley & Hall clarifies further the book's historical significance and the efforts that went into its writing:

"Awarded both Editor's Choice and Publisher's Choice by iUniverse, Lizzi & Fredl is a story elucidating that France had concentration, internment and labor camps thought mostly to exist in Germany. This memoir is also a love story of unconditional devotion and resilience between a happily married couple whose lives were disrupted by a seven-year nightmare. It took many years for Dr. Stanford to get his parents to share their stories, and once they did, it was apparent to him that they had not even revealed their individual horrors to each other over the years.... Lizzi & Fredl delivers a remarkable true story of courage, faith, and overwhelming love."

Publisher: IUniverse (April 17, 2008)
ISBN-10: 0595433111
ISBN-13: 978-0595433117

Book received from the author for my objective review.

Lucky Dollar Finds: Aug. 9

Ronnie: The Autobiography by Ronnie Wood

My Lucky Dollar Finds this week include the biography of Ronnie Wood, guitarist and member of The Rolling Stones band for over 30 years. (This book goes to my son, the music lover).

Publisher's description: " A fascinating portrait not just of the Stones but of the greatest rockers of the 1960s and beyond - from Eric Clapton to Rod Stewart, Jimmy Page to Keith Moon, Jimi Hendrix to Pete Townshend - Ronnie is a rich revelatory book." St. Martin's Press, 2007.


The People's Princess: Cherished Memories of Diana, Princess of Wales, From Those Who Knew Her Best by talk-show host Larry King is a collection of essays, published on the tenth anniversary of Diana's death, 2007. (This book goes to my sister-in-law, who loves Diana books). Publishers Weekly says at least three of the essays were written by people who never met the princess. One Amazon reviewer says the book should have been titled "From Those Who Met Her." British actress Joan Collins is one of the contributors.


Three Sisters (Charlie Moon Mysteries" by James D. Doss.

Colorado Ute rancher and tribal investigator Charlie Moon and his aunt Daisy, a Ute shaman, combine their talents to help find the killer of one of three sisters, daughter of a wealthy rancher. This mystery-thriller is number 12 in the series. St. Martin's Press, 2007. (This book is for me, a mystery lover).

What books have you been lucky enough to find for $1?

Teaser Tuesday: Lizzi & Fredl, A Perilous Journey of Love and Faith

"What's wrong?" Fredl asked, alarmed.

"I don't know, but something bad is going to happen. I can feel it in my bones. We have to leave right now!"

p. 19, Lizzi & Fredl, a biography by William B. Stanford.

Who and where am I? A young couple, master jeweler Fredl and dressmaker Lizzi, in Austria in 1938 decide to leave their home country for France, frightened by the "spreading threat of Nazism." Will France prove to be the safe haven they envision?

Here is the link to the full review of the book: Lizzi and Fredl review

Book provided by the author in exchange for my objective review.


TEASER TUESDAYS is a weekly meme hosted by Should Be Reading. Choose two sentences from your current read, and add the author and title for readers. Anyone can join in.