Avidmom's 2014 Journal of Books, Chocolate, Music and Movie Magic! Part III

*Reserved for this year's "reading quilt"



1. Two Parties, One Tux, and a Very Short Film About the Grapes of Wrath by Steven Goldman
2. I Am A Pole (And So Can You) by Stephen Colbert
3. Billy Joel: The Life and Times of An Angry Young Man by Hank Bordowitz
4. The True History of Chocolate by Sophie Coe
5. Emotional Vampires: Dealing With People Who Drain You Dry by Albert Bernstein
6. Love Is The Cure: On Life, Loss and The End of Aids by Elton John
7. The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon by Alexander McCall Smith
8. An Easy Burden by Andrew Young
9. The Pearl by John Steinbeck
10. Battlefield of the Mind by Joyce Meyer
11. Serpent in the Thorns by Jeri Westerson
12. The Power of Right Believing by Joseph Prince
13. Travels with Charley and Later Novels, 1947-1962 by John Steinbeck (Travels with Charley)
14. Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T.S. Eliot
15. Burning Bright by John Steinbeck
16. Jesus: A Meditation on His Stories and His Relationships with Women by Andrew M. Greeley
17. Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
18. Knee Deep in Paradise by Brett Butler
19. A Natural Woman by Carole King
20. The Minicolony Concept: A Different Approach to Feral Cat Control by Dan Winters
21. Dave Barry's Greatest Hits by Dave Barry
22. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
23. Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth by Reza Aslan
24. The Demon's Parchment by Jeri Westerson
25. Alice In Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
26. Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf
27. The Stranger by Albert Camus
28. Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
29. 700 Sundays by Billy Crystal
30. The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling
31. Troubled Bones by Jeri Westerson
32. Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt
33. Superman versus the Ku Klux Klan by Richard Bowers
34. Nothing to Fear: FDR's Inner Circle and the Hundred Days That Created Modern America by Adam Cohen
35. Beyond Belief: My Secret Life Inside Scientology and My Harrowing Escape by Jenna Miscavige Hill
36. You Can Begin Again by Joyce Meyers
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Currently Reading:

Altered Books Sculptures by Susan Hoerth

Really nice pictures, especially >1 avidmom: above.

Hi Avid! Congratulations on the new thread. That's a great image up top ^^.

Thanks Poquette & Polaris. I agree! Aren't they gorgeous & unique works of art.

Tickers On Parade

Checking in with myself to see how those reading goals are going ....

Alice In Wonderland

My copy of this children's classic is a little paperback and not at all quite as fancy as the one in message #3 above. It did include the original illustrations, though, that were so much fun to look at. The illustrations turned the story into an experience.


(The Queen has ordered the Cheshire cat's head chopped off - but he doesn't have a body. It's a problem.)


(Alice overgrows her welcome in the house of the White Rabbit.)

I first read Alice In Wonderland as an adult (well, technically I was an adult!) in an English Literature class and had to write an essay. You know, what is Alice In Wonderland reallyabout? Let's analyze it to death and take all the fun out of it. HA! This time I read it for nothing but the fun of it. I enjoyed it at face value - simply nonsense that makes a lot of sense. I was not looking for any mysterious deeper meaning, although I caught a lot of the author's little barbs and jokes. It made me smile and it also was quite an interesting counter-reading to the other book I was reading at the time.

I can still picture many of the illustrations from the Alice's Adventures in Wonderland I read (and had read to me) as a child. Of course, I loved it. I was so disappointed when I couldn't find it when I cleaned out my parents' apartment.

> I never read it as a child, but I can see what a great read-aloud book it would be. How sad about your own childhood copy. :(

"..... that extraordinary gift, that woman's gift, of making a world of her own wherever she happened to be."


Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf


Mrs. Dalloway is a unique book: there are no chapters; simply paragraph after paragraph. It takes place on one beautiful sunny June day in London as Mrs. Dalloway prepares for her party that evening. While there are things going on on the surface, the real action is inside the characters. Woolf's novel is mostly stream-of-consciousness that flows from one thought to the next inside the minds of the people who live here on the pages of Mrs. Dalloway's London and from one character to the other. Woolf's very unique writing style (this was the first Woolf I ever read) was, at first, confusing and hard for me to get used to, but once I did and just "went with the flow", things started to gel. I was impressed by the way Woolf effortlessly weaves her characters inner mental workings and the outside world.

"She could not imagine Peter or Richard taking the trouble to give a party for no reason whatever.

But to go deeper, beneath what people said (and these judgements, how superficial, how fragmentary they are!) in her own mind now, what did it mean to her, this thing she called life? Oh, it was very queer. Here was So-and-so in South Kensington; some one up in Bayswater; and somebody else, say in Mayfair. And she felt quite continuously a sense of their existence and she felt what a waste; and she felt what a pity; and she felt if only they could be brought together; so she did it. And it was an offering; to combine, to create; but to whom?

An offering for the sake of offering, perhaps. Anyhow, it was her gift. Nothing else had she of the slightest importance; could not think, write, even play the piano. She muddled Armenians and Turks; loved success; hated discomfort; must be liked; talked oceans of nonsense: and to this day, ask her what the Equator was, and she did not know.

All the same, that one day should follow another Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday; that one should wake up in the morning see the sky; walk in the park; meet Hugh Whitbread; then suddenly in came Peter; then these roses; it was enough. After that, how unbelievable death was! - that it must end; and no one in the whole world would know how she had loved it all; how every instant ...

The door opened. Elizabeth knew that her mother was resting. ...."

Mrs. Woolf's prose is at times beautifully poetic:

"Shredding and slicing, dividing and subdividing, the clocks of Harley Street nibbled at the June day...";

sometimes funny:

"...she had the thought of the Empire always at hand, .... so that one could not figure her even in death parted from the earth or roaming territories over which, in some spiritual shape, the Union Jack had ceased to fly. To be not English even among the dead - no, no! Impossible!"

snarky:

"With twice his wits, she had to see things through his eyes - one of the tragedies of married life."

and often very wise

"... for she admitted, she knew nothing about them, only jumped to conclusions, as one does, for what can one know even of the people one lives with every day?"

There were a few reasons I read this now. I think of it as a "classic" and that's one of my perpetual reading goals, to read more classics. It's also a book I own, and this year I went so far as to join the ROOTs club to encourage myself to read the stuff that's sitting on the shelf. Most importantly, I chose to read it at this particular time because Woolf's character's Septimus, a WWI shell-shocked veteran suffering with (from my layman's perspective and what do I know?) PTSD, paranoid-schizophrenia & bipolar disorder, is considered one of the most accurate depictions of mental illness in a novel. (I learned this from a link on The Hibernator's Suicide and Mental Illness Awareness Theme read). Dalloway's brilliant introduction of Septimus into the story is effective and even a bit comedic. After our initial introduction, though, we can so clearly feel the pain Septimus's illness causes his wife and how incompetently people suffering from mental illness were treated then. Even Mrs. Dalloway considers Septimus's doctor (one of two) as someone "...obscurely evil..."

For such a small book, (my copy is less than 200 pages), Mrs. Dalloway is very complex. Virginia Woolf manages to say and do a lot with her cast of characters going about London on one seemingly innocuous June day.

"... Big Ben strikes. There! Out it boomed. First a warning, musical; then the hour, irrevocable. The leaden circles dissolved in the air."

Fabulous review of Mrs. Dalloway, avidmom! I hadn't planned to read this novel, but your review of it ensures that I will, someday.

Great review of Mrs Dalloway Avid. I've never read Virginia Woolf. Would this be a good place to start?

Mrs. Dalloway was the first Virginia Woolf book I read, about 2 years ago, and I'm so intrigued by her now. I really loved the book, which I need to reread at some point, and I read To the Lighthouse last year that I also loved. I agree that I had to just give in and go with the flow of her writing for both books. I'm planning to read either The Waves or The Voyage Out this year and Orlando next year.

>13 Polaris-: I think Mrs. Dalloway is a great place to start!

>12 kidzdoc: Thanks kidzdoc! I thought it was definitely worth the time to read; her writing is exquisite. It may not go on my list as "all-time favorites", but it's certainly unforgettable.

>13 Polaris-: Thanks Polaris! I agree with japaul; Mrs. Dalloway is a good place to start.

>14 japaul22: I need to reread at some point,
I agree; this is one to be read & reread. I think it would make a fabulous RL book club pick too! Or even a not-so RL pick - I wonder if there is a Mrs. Dalloway thread floating around on LT.

It's good to catch up on the classics avid and Mrs Dalloway is a great one. Interested to read your comments about mental health which as you say is accurately portrayed in this novel

>11 avidmom: Great review of Mrs. Dalloway, Susie. I have this one on my shelf, and should probably get to it sooner rather than later. I haven't read anything by Virginia Woolf, so might as well start here.

>16 baswood: Thanks, baswood. I like what Jackie Kennedy said, along the lines of classics were classics for a reason and I find that to be true.

>17 NanaCC: Thanks, Nana! It's an unforgettable book.

You may never understand
How the stranger is inspired
But he isn't always evil
And he isn't always wrong
- from Billy Joel's "The Stranger"



My son read this for his AP literature class. He seemed to like it and asked me to read it. So I did. It's a very short book and in the short time it took me to read it, it had my undivided attention.

The Stranger is divided into two sections: Part I and Part II. In the first part, the main character's mother dies and he goes to her funeral. He doesn't seem to be grieving at all about his mother's death; he's more focused on the logistics of his out-of-town trip. He's incredibly self-absorbed:

When she was at home with me, Maman used to spend her time following me with her eyes, not saying a thing. For the first few days she was at the home she cried a lot. But that was because she wasn't used to it. A few months later and she would have cried if she'd been taken out. She was used to it. That's partly why I didn't go there much this past year. And also because it took up my Sunday - not to mention the trouble of getting to the bus, buying tickets, and spending two hours traveling."

He seems emotionally detached from everything and everyone; although, it does seem people do like him. There's a love interest and a few friends who enter his life. These friendships are forged more out of necessity and convenience than choice. Inadvertently, Meursault becomes entangled in the drama of one of his friends. One thing leads to another and, in what seems to be an open and shut case of self-defense, fatally shoots a man. But even the murder itself is devoid of emotion - at least the level of passion you would expect at a moment like that...."I knew that I had shattered the harmony of the day, the exceptional silence of a beach where I'd been happy. Then I fired four more times at the motionless body where the bullets lodged without leaving a trace. And it was like knocking four quick times on the door of unhappiness." When asked later if he feels any remorse or guilt over the shooting, he responds that he feels "...annoyed."

After the murder at the conclusion of Part I, the book focuses on Meursault's arrest, time in prison, and subsequent trial. It seems to be an easy case to win, but Meursault's character, not the facts of the case, seem to be being tried. His lack of emotion at his mother's funeral and his aloof nature comes back to haunt him. He easily admits to his lawyer that ... my nature was such that my physical needs often got in the way of my feelings. The day I buried Maman, I was very tired and sleepy, so much so that I wasn't really aware of what was going on. What I can say for certain is that I would rather Maman hadn't died. But my lawyer didn't seem satisfied. He said, "That's not enough."

That's the key to the whole character, Meursault casually observes the world, as if from afar. When he does take part, he seems to be dragged into it. He doesn't act the way he's expected to act, nor does he even seem to know the "correct" way to respond in certain situations. Just because someone doesn't act/think/react the way we think they should, does that make them "criminal" or less than human in some way?

I liked this book; I will be thinking about it for quite a while.
Maybe one day I'll actually understand it!

I read The Stranger in high school. Couldn't get into it. I can't like a book unless I like the protagonist.

>20 JDHomrighausen: Nice to see you here!

Yep. If my son hadn't asked me to read it, I probably wouldn't have. I found that while I didn't necessarily "like" Meursault, a small part of me understood him (his constant need for comfort, his focus on the minute details of life) - which I found a bit disconcerting, to say the least.

I think reading L'Etranger can be a really unsettling experience.

>22 baswood: It certainly was! Although I must say I enjoyed reading it - for the story - but felt uncomfortable about the philosophy, and much more uncomfortable with seeing a bit of myself in such an unlikeable character.

But, I think, that was the point. Wasn't it?

?????????????????

(And now that I've read it, I'm off to read your review!)

By the way, I read the Matthew Ward translation and I see your English translation is quite different.

The illustrations in the copy of this book are gorgeous, so thought I'd share some.


"My mother and I."


"A bad place to leap."


"The morning of Balaclava."

Black Beauty was a childhood favorite. Before I was a tomboy I was a horse . . . ;-)

I owe my life to a horse.
Literally.
XD

Therein must be a tale. Care to share?

ETA: BTW, who was the artist in your copy of Black Beauty?

>27 Poquette: My mother and father both worked at the same place, so I always assumed that that was where they met. Recently, I asked my mom where she met dad and she said, "Well, I was at the Fourth of July parade in town, and there was this guy riding this beautiful horse. I fell in love with that horse! So, I started talking to the guy about his horse." Wasn't too long after that, she married that guy. And here I am. LOL!

The artist's name is Lucy Kemp-Welch. She illustrated the 1915 copy of Black Beauty. There were a lot of black ink drawings in my book too, but, unfortunately, couldn't find any on the internet to share. I think she went on to do more children's books illustrations. I'll have to look her up.

Delightful!

And thanks re the artist.

Just catching up on your interesting thread. Love the altered books at the top.

>30 Nickelini: Thanks! I wonder how look it took those artists to make those. I would not have the patience or the talent!

After 21 years on my shelf, I finally took this gorgeous copy down and actually read it. I know it's been there for 22 years, because when I bought it, I wrote my name and the date in the front cover.


Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
"No one forgets Black Beauty, for Black Beauty helps children grow up." (from Ellen Shapiro's Foreword)

I am so glad that that was the sentence that started my reading of this children's classic because I was a little shocked at some of the brutal and harsh things that happened in Beauty's world. Told from Beauty's point of view, Beauty relates to us all the bad things that happen to him and/or the animals and people around him, mostly due to ignorance, cruelty, lack of common sense, pride, greed, or the "drink devil." Of course, this is the point of the story, to advocate for animal's rights, most especially, horses, but there's a subtle sermon throughout of how to live a "good" life.

According to the biographies I have read about the author, Anna Sewell had been crippled at an early age and found the only way to get around was by horse and carriage, so it's only natural to see why she would have such an affinity for the horses, and animals in general. Sewell's Quaker beliefs (observation of the Sabbath, the evils of alcohol, etc.) are also strongly felt throughout the book. The preachiness, at times, was so blatantly obvious that I had to snicker a little bit, but knowing full well that her heart was in the right place, it didn't bother me, as much as amuse me. Also, so many times you simply cannot argue with what she says through her characters:

"we have no right to distress any of God's creatures without a very good reason; we call them dumb animals, and so they are, for they cannot tell us how they feel, but they do not suffer less because they have no words."

"It is always difficult to drive fast in the city in the middle of the day, when the streets are full of traffic, but we did what could be done; and when a good driver and a good horse, who understand each other, are of one mind, it is wonderful what they can do. ..."

“Do you know why this world is as bad as it is?... It is because people think only about their own business, and won't trouble themselves to stand up for the oppressed, nor bring the wrong-doers to light... My doctrine is this, that if we see cruelty or wrong that we have the power to stop, and do nothing, we make ourselves sharers in the guilt.”

There is no religion without love, and people may talk as much as they like about their religion, but if it does not teach them to be good and kind to man and beast it is all a sham - all a sham, James, and it won't stand when things come to be turned inside out and put down for what they are.”

Beauty encounters many kinds of different owners and circumstances throughout the story. There are many kindhearted and wonderful people in the story and Beauty has a lovely brave spirit throughout, even when things are not ideal. We learn about the world, a mixture of good and bad, through his eyes. Strangely enough, I remember reading this in 6th grade, but don't remember being nearly as touched by the cruelty Beauty saw then as I do now. (I think I was more taken away with the thought of the story being told by the horse himself.) As a mother, I'm still a little surprised it's considered a "children's book. Here, "Captain", the old war horse is recanting his experience on the battlefield "... I had heard the cries and groans of the dying, I had cantered over ground slippery with blood, ..."

Despite all the darkness and preachiness, I enjoyed this book immensely and found it a very pleasant read.

Also, according to our family historian, we are distant relatives of the author. It makes the book a little more special for me. :)

I have not read Black Beauty since childhood, and definitely don't remember the preachiness. It would be interesting to reread it. I have a copy and one of these days, maybe I shall. Thanks for reminding me of this childhood favorite.

I loved Black Beauty so much as a child, but when I read it to my children a few years ago, I was astonished at how preachy it was. Of course, they ate it up, dramatic stable fires trumping an awful lot of lectures on the demon drink or keeping Sunday holy.

>33 Poquette: It was quite a different experience reading it as an adult.

>34 RidgewayGirl: Like I say, all that preachiness amused me; but I can't get my mind around "... I had heard the cries and groans of the dying, I had cantered over ground slippery with blood, ..." as part of a bedtime story.

I enjoyed Black Beauty as a kid, but shudder to think what I would make of it now.

>36 baswood: It's certainly a different experience. The preachiness is secondary to everything else going on.

Black Beauty was one of my favourite books as a child too, and I read it several times. I started it as a read-out-loud when my daughter was about 9, but I just couldn't take it. Can't remember what the problem was exactly, but I was having no fun at all reading it and was also bored. My daughter said she was enjoying it, but she had no problem moving on to something else.

"... I had heard the cries and groans of the dying, I had cantered over ground slippery with blood, ..." This didn't bother me as a child, and it doesn't now. Fairy tales are full of graphic violence, and I don't think it's harmful when taken in context. Mind you, I wasn't a fearful or delicate child, and neither were my daughters. Of course it could affect others differently.

Also, according to our family historian, we are distant relatives of the author. It makes the book a little more special for me. :) That is so cool!

>38 Nickelini: None of the harsh realities Beauty witnessed or any of the preachiness even phased me when I read it as a kid. I just thought it was a great story with a wonderful message: empathize with the animals and each other. It also lead me to read other books about animals: The Incredible Journey and All Things Wise and Wonderful.

And it is cool being related to the author - especially when the book is always mentioned as a powerful force for animal rights. I really wasn't aware of the book's success or impact until now. I knew it changed the way horses were treated, but didn't know its effect on animal welfare overall.

"In the case of Black Beauty, the change in outlook and sense of empathy towards animals the novel created for many who read the book led to increased action against animal cruelty."
(http://livinggreenmag.com/2012/11/30/people-solutions/black-beauty-the-tale-of-a-horse-that-changed-the-perspective-of-a-nation/#IM4pfI12a19tOkKZ.99)

700 Sundays by Billy Crystal

We saw Crystal's one-man show, "700 Sundays" on HBO a few months ago. It was really wonderful so I had been interested in reading the book of the same name. It was fun reading the book, but certainly not necessary if you've already seen Crystal's special. Watching Crystal perform is so much more fun than reading; it would be mah-velous if this was available in audio - if Crystal narrated.

I didn't read the book for the sake of reading the book. I recently downloaded Amazon's free Kindle app. to see if I wanted to take the leap into the 21st century and have been "test driving" e-reading. I thought reading something familiar would be a good way to give electronic reading a test run and this was in my library's e-book selection. I really like the advantages to e-reading (especially the dictionary feature!). The only problem I had with e-reading was that it was hard to see the pictures included in the book. I wonder if there is a way around that; I couldn't find a way around it on my computer.

I've asked Santa for a Kindle.
My eldest son just shakes his head at me and says, "well, it's about time!"

>40 avidmom: I wonder if there is a way around that

I have a kindle and love it, but pictures aren't always easy to see. But, I am lucky to have an iPad too, and that works well for the pictures because I can make them bigger. I use the Kindle app on my iPad, but mostly for the pictures. I prefer actually reading on my Kindle, and it is very easy to keep them in synch.

On another note, I was lucky enough to see Billy Crystal doing 700 Sundays on stage in New York several years ago. It was a great show.

>41 NanaCC: That's good to know about the pics., but I don't think I can ask Santa for a Kindle and an ipad. LOL!

Billy Crystal must be something to see in person! I've loved him since his days on "SOAP".

>42 avidmom: There may be other Kindle users with another suggestion. That one works for me. I know that I am lucky to have the option.

>43 NanaCC: What kind of Kindle do you have? I was seriously considering the "paperwhite" version.

>43 NanaCC: I have the Touch which I've had for a couple of years. Several of my family members have the paperwhite, and if mine ever goes kaput, that is what I will get. I think it looks great.

>45 NanaCC: I hope I can hold on till Santa comes. LOL!

The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling

I read this book because of the black cat who was born in our backyard, who I named Bagheera (because Blackie for a black cat was just too boring). That led to watching the Disney movie, and that led to reading the actual book. I really enjoyed reading about the "real" Mowgli, Baloo and Bagheera, who are more mature, brave, smart, and heroic in the story than Disney gives them credit. As much as I loved The Jungle Book, Rikki-Tikki-Tavi, about the heroic little mongoose, turned out to be my favorite. The Jungle Book consists of three short stories, and all were worth the time spent. All the stories are summarized at the end in poem form, or led into with a poem.

Most definitely classic for a reason.

I read this on the Kindle app. for my desktop, so I don't have a beautiful book cover, but I did like the story about the elephant dance, so the elephant cover won for my purposes here. The Kindle was a great help, because I could highlight all the passages that struck me, for one reason or another. There's a lot more going on in the stories than a man cub and a tiger, I'm sure. I especially liked when the unruly monkey tribe says:

"We are great. We are free. We are wonderful. We are the most wonderful people in all the jungle! We all say so, and so it must be true," they shouted.
Mmm hmmm.

I loved this because it was just fun to say out loud:"while Bagheera hurried forward, at the quick panther-canter."
Panther canter.

I'm sure there is a lot to say about Kipling's stories, more than that they were just fun to read, because he does stick his barbs in, and has a lot to say.

So glad I read the "real" "Jungle Book" but I'll always love the Disney version. I am excited for the live version with Benedict Cumberbatch as Shere Khan and Christian Bale as Bagheera that's on its way.

It is not too many years since I read Kim, and I was surprised at how much I liked it. I hope that you'll be reporting your take on The Jungle Book.

Robert

>48 Mr.Durick: I haven't read that one and admit to not having read much of Kipling at all. If it wasn't for my English Literature teacher at the community college reading aloud to us the Just So Stories, which I fell in love with, I may have never read anything by Kipling.

(Edited because I typed in the wrong number and looked like I was talking to myself - ha!)

Troubled Bones by Jeri Westerson

Crispin gritted his teeth. .... He cradled his head. His head was pounding again. Too many twists. Too many guilty parties. And if he made the wrong move it could be him who sent Chaucer to the gallows."

This is the fourth in Westerson's medieval noir series. Crispin Guest, the degraded knight turned "Tracker" (i.e. detective) has been hired by the Archbishop of Canterbury to guard the bones of St. Thomas a Becket. Very bad things happen at the Cathedral: the sainted martyr's bones are stolen on Crispin's watch and not all the pilgrims who go with Crispin and Jack, his protege, to Canterbury, will make it back home. Crispin has to, of course, ferret out the murderer(s) and find the missing bones. When all the evidence points to Crispin's close friend, Geoffrey Chaucer, the investigation takes on a very personal and agonizing tone for Crispin.

This is Westerson's homage to one of her favorite works of literature, The Canterbury Tales. I've never read them, but apparently, she used many of the characters and storylines in those tales to weave her story here.

These books are very entertaining and I was glad Westerson to returned to her usual more light-hearted approach than she did in her last Demon's Parchment which had a dark, creepy, and Gothic horror feel to it. I liked The Demon's Parchment very much (because I like dark, creepy, and Gothic!) but it is a bit of anomaly in the series.

Another solid 3 and 1/2 to 4 star read.

Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores The Hidden Side of Everything

This was a fun read, and interesting while it lasted. "Freakonomics" is based on Levitt's NYT's column where he, based on the columns I read that were included at the back of the book, tackles an assortment of off-the-wall subjects such as "How is the Ku Klux Klan Like a Group of Real Estate Agents?" and "Why Do Drug Dealers Live with their mothers?" Interesting questions, and they (Levitt & Dubner) had the most interesting answers.

Freakonomics has no unifying theme, except maybe, the application of economics to social science or, perhaps, the reverse. (?) It's basically the study of the fundamental question of economics: How do people get what they want? Most of it was highly entertaining and maybe, at least a bit, enlightening. Some of the answers to the questions like why was there a crime drop in the 90s when we were all being scared to death on the nightly news that teenage "superpredators" were going to go on a killing rampage had a surprising, albeit logical answer. Why? Because of legalized abortion back in the 70s. The children, the unwanted, born to a single parent/low income home, destined to be neglected and abused and take up a life of crime simply hadn't been born. It's a valid argument, I think, but I think it's an incredibly superficial and narrow minded one, IMO. Surprisingly enough, that argument didn't generate as much hate mail for the authors as their take on real estate agents. Apparently, realtors are a sensitive lot.

It was a fun read and it was a good lesson on how to look at things differently and not to always buy into the "conventional wisdom." I've been around enough to know that "conventional wisdom" is very often wrong.

I'd give it 3 stars + maybe 1/2 of another for its uniqueness.

"Of all the late afternoon little dramas for little people, Mutual’s “Superman” had received most comment and most laurels— all in tribute to the year -old battle against intolerance …"



This was one of those "one thing leads to another" event. In the book, Freakonomics, the authors talk about information asymmetry, where having more information than somebody else puts you at an advantage or, depending on which side of the fence you're on, a disadvantage. The story they put forth in the book was that in the radio series, "Superman", Stetson Kennedy was feeding KKK code words to the producers and they were including those in the show which led to the downfall (or at least "downgrade" of the KKK). That story turned out to be not true. (The authors address this in the revised edition of the book, if I remember right). Code words aside, the radio show "Superman" was really used to expose the KKK and other hate groups for what they were, and try to teach children, and the adults tuning in as well, that prejudice was not OK. Superman's shows even got a new opening to kick off the anti-prejudice/hate campaign:

“Yes, it’s Superman. Strange visitor from another planet, who came to earth with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men. Superman , defender of law and order, champion of equal rights, valiant,courageous fighter against the forces of hate and prejudice!”

The story of Superman tackling the social ill of prejudice was one that I never heard of and it is quite a story! Apparently, between the WWI and WWII years, the KKK experienced somewhat of a "revival" and about the same time, Superman was being created by two high school students in Cleveland, Ohio. Superman spent most of his WWII years fighting pseudo Nazis and so-forth, but when the war ended, Superman needed a different enemy. "Contemplating the future of the program, K& E vice president William B. Lewis asked a fascinating question: What if The Adventures of Superman tackled contemporary social issues like racism and anti-Semitism?.... What if they used Superman to teach children the values of tolerance and fair play and the importance of accepting other kids regardless of race, religion, or national origin? What if Superman could teach a generation of children to reject those who preached prejudice and hate?"

Experts were brought in, including a young free lance writer for the New York Times, Ben Peter Freeman, who had previously written one of the most popular scripts, "The Scarlet Widow" a year earlier. It was a gamble for everyone involved in Superman. What if the shows were preachy and boring and people tuned out? What if someone turned on their radio at the wrong time and heard something inappropriate and got the wrong impression? Bob Maxwell, the producer of the show felt it was worth the risk, Superman's Jewish creators, felt that the message of tolerance and acceptance was more important than any financial loss or backlash, and even Kellogg's, the sponsors of the radio program were all in. “We’re not in the business of education,” he {K & E Vice President} said. “We’re selling corn flakes. But we’d like to do both. We sure would like to do both.” Maxwell thought that "Operation Intolerance" "... could set a new standard for educational programming for the entire broadcast industry."

Operation Intolerance, which included "The Hatemongers Organization" and "Clan of the Fiery Cross" were great successes. “CLAN OF THE FIERY CROSS” was an unprecedented success. The increase in ratings solidified The Adventures of Superman as the undisputed leader in children’s radio ...."

I enjoyed this book immensely, because I was absolutely fascinated with the story. I really liked the way the author showed the parallels between the rise of the KKK (and the reasons behind it) in America and the rise of Superman. There are a lot more details in here too - details about the people behind the KKK (and other hate groups and/or KKK off-shoots) and the people behind Superman. A hero emerges here too, one Stetson Kennedy, (pictured above) who infiltrated the KKK and wrote about his time there in the books Southern Exposure and The Klan Unmasked.

Great story. Glad I read it. It led me to a youtube video where I listened to a clip of the actual radio broadcast of "The Hatemongers Organization" and there was a link there to a website where you can listen to full episodes! WOW....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6iV7HnMpJb8

https://archive.org/details/Superman_page09

I cannot and really don't want to imagine a world without Superman. I would like to image a world without prejudice and hatred.

Very interesting review! Thinking of Superman and the KKK at the same moment makes my toenails curl.

That's fascinating about Superman and the KKK; too bad Superman isn't taking on the other hate groups that are flourishing in the US today.

>54 Poquette: Thinking of Superman and the KKK at the same moment makes my toenails curl.
Mine too!

>55 rebeccanyc: too bad Superman isn't taking on the other hate groups that are flourishing in the US today.

You're so right! *heavy sigh*

Not to mention workplace safety, unemployment insurance and laws against child labor.

>57 avidmom: *like*

>57 avidmom: My sweetie is reading a bio of Frances Perkins right now, called The Woman behind the New Deal!

>58 kidzdoc: She is quickly emerging as one of my new heroes.

>59 rebeccanyc: What a coincidence! I'm reading about her in the Adam Cohen book I'm just about to finish about the first 100 days of Roosevelt's presidency. I've already put The Woman Behind the New Deal on my wishlist.

Just skimming through because I'm wildly behind in my reading of people's threads, and just on my way out, so a quick note to say that this morning I got to the New Deal in Robert Caro's The Path To Power and found the stuff about Hoover and the conduct of Congress simply jaw dropping and was going to ask people for good reading suggestions about that period. I wait to hear how you get on with Nothing To Fear. Will come back later and catch up properly. Looks like you've been reading some really good stuff.

>62 Oandthegang: I would definitely recommend the Adam Cohen book about the "New Deal!"

Lots of interesting things on your thread - and such a diversity!

I'm surprised the Superman lot didn't find themselves in hot water with HUAC. Although I was not a big reader of the Superman comics as a child, I've always remembered a social instruction sequence I read. There was a couple of boys and one of them dropped a candy wrapper on the street. Superman appeared and told the boy off. The boy countered that it was only a small thing. Superman then made a supermess to show what would happen if everybody dropped litter on the streets. Having had the wider implications of individual actions so graphically demonstrated to them, the humbled boys thanked Superman and promised never to litter again. That lesson has always stayed with me. (And even if I don't always live up to the bigger lesson I never drop litter.)

The Jungle Book was one of my favourite books when I was a child. (I also had The Second Jungle Book and The Just So Stories.) Within the books though there were some stories I loved, but others I just couldn't warm to. (When I was growing up Mowgli was pronounced as spelt, and I've always been puzzled by the switch to the silent 'w' nowadays. Is Disney responsible? I'm sure in the old movie with Sabu it was Mow to rhyme with cow, not something you do to the lawn at the weekend.) My copy had the original illustrations, but a couple of years ago I bought a copy for a friend's child, and it was a lovely American publication (forgotten the publisher) which included not only the original illustrations but some others by the Detmold brothers, which were very good. I think having lovely illustrations is part of the joy of books - I always particularly enjoy copies of the classics illustrated by Hugh Thomson - and I think missing out on them would be a particular downside to e-readers.

Keep meaning to read Mrs Dalloway. Did you see the movie 'The Hours' with its updated Mrs Dalloway?

Troubled Bones looks fun. One to look out for when I've cleared the decks a bit.

Looking forward to more of your posts.

>61 avidmom: Susie, How does this one compare to the one we read by Goodwin?

>64 Oandthegang: Thanks for dropping by! My big introduction was the old black and white Superman TV series which I watched early in the morning while waiting to get ready for school and then later the Christopher Reeve movie.

That lesson has always stayed with me. (And even if I don't always live up to the bigger lesson I never drop litter.)
Funny, the things we learn as little kids that seem to stick!

I agree you with you about the illustrations. I loved the original illustrations in my copy of Black Beauty and Alice In Wonderland.

missing out on them would be a particular downside to e-readers.
Haven't gone off to e-readers yet (although I've put in my request for a Kindle to Santa). I read Billy Crystal's 700 Sundays through Kindle app. on my desktop and was really frustrated with being able to "see" the picture but not really being able to "SEE" the picture!!!! Those were only black and white photographs.

These old classic children's novels with the original illustrations are works of art.

I haven't seen "The Hours" yet; but will have to look for that one. The Jeri Westerson books featuring Crispin Guest are a lot of fun. They're "cozy Saturday" reads, really, if you can find a few hours to read 'em through in one shot. (*sigh* I never can!)

>65 NanaCC: Hi there! XD Cohen's book concentrates on FDR's Cabinet members - who they were, where they came from, and why they thought the way they did; and the legislation that they worked on and passed. It's really interesting. We associate FDR with the New Deal, as if he came up with the ideas all by himself; but really, most of the ideas (except for the CCC, which was FDR's baby wire to wire for the most part) came from the Cabinet. Cohen even goes on to talk about what happened after the New Deal - and how a lot of FDR's faithful Cabinet members, actually turned on him.

OH, yeah, and the Republicans called FDR a socialist, communist, dictator too .... sound familiar?

I promise to write a review of it - soon. Today we are going off to a family wedding. :)

Cool about the superman book (goodness, I was three weeks behind here :( ). Noting the Cohen book along with the Goodwin from earlier. If I can get them on audio...

>60 avidmom: I started Nothing to Fear last year and was roaring through it until I had to rearrange things to show the house. It somehow disappeared and I was resigned to it being in storage. When I saw a couple of episodes of the public television series on FDR this fall, while in the US, I really wanted to find it. Last night I did; it wasn't in storage at all. Instead, it had been swept up in a pile of TBR Russian books and was misshelved, if that is a word. Great book and I'm looking forward to your review.

Looks like I'm behind on my own thread! Geeez .... Sorry Dan & Sassy

>67 dchaikin: I think Goodwin's book would be great on audio; the book reads like a novel.

>68 SassyLassy: It took us a while to get through "The Roosevelts" here, but it was definitely well worth the time spent! I can totally relate to your "misshelving" mishap.

I am so behind here on LT on everybody's thread and my own it's not even funny. I am either not here at all or I am "binge lurking" LOL! The last few months have been busy. Last week was the Christmas Parade which Big Kid got to march in (that was fun, though); a few days before that was the stressful driving through the flooded streets to get to school and work (not any fun at all!); before that was Thanksgiving; a few days before that was The Wedding; and sadly, a few weeks before that, my uncle, who was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer in September passed away the first week of November. We barely had a chance to get used to the idea that my uncle was even sick before he was gone. Throughout all of this, we have been trying to alleviate the feral cat problem in our neighborhood by TNRing as many kitties as we can and I've "tamed" most of our "wild beasties." But that's another story on another thread.

All of this has made reading a bit of a struggle for me as I seem to have little ability to concentrate for any long period of time. It also doesn't help that my birthday/Christmas/birthday season is right around the corner. This year, I decided to hand make some hand embroidered Christmas presents. Hard to read and stitch at the same time (I'm working on it, though! HA!) The most reading I've been able to squeeze in is the few minutes I spend in my kid's high school parking lot at end of the day and I am grateful for that little bit of peace and quiet inherent in my schedule. It helps that my kids' high school is in the country part of town; across the street are horses out in pasture and right next to the school is the dairy farm. Except for the smell in the AM and the flies, it's a gorgeous spot! HA!

I have two books going at the moment: Animals Make Us Human: Creating the Best Life for Animals by Temple Grandin and Life Itself by Roger Ebert. My friend is a big animal lover and a fan of Temple Grandin and I wanted to see if maybe this would make a good gift for her; the latter is for me as I grew up watching Siskel and Ebert's "At The Movies" through all my teen years and they led me to a lot of my favorite movies that I might not have otherwise even heard of.

Nothing to Fear: FDR 's Inner Circle and the Hundred Days That Created Modern America by Adam Cohen

Soon after finishing No Ordinary Time, which was about FDR & Eleanor's handling of WWII, I found this book at our local bookstore. It sat on the shelf for a while. Then, Ken Burns excellent documentary came on PBS and I finally pulled this out and read it. This is one of the few books I actually annotated. It was a pristine book; now it looks like someone spilled a few bottles of highlighter ink on it!

Cohen's book could not be more accurately titled. The book is about FDR's Cabinet choices after his first election in 1934. Every chapter is a little mini-bio of the most important members of the Cabinet. We learn who these people's parents and/or grandparents were; what part of the country they hailed from and what influenced their thinking until FDR picked them to work with him. Similar to Lincoln and Martin Luther King, FDR often picked people who he knew would think differently from him and each other to get the job done. The big job then was to help the American people who were experiencing the Great Depression. People were unemployed, homeless, farms were being foreclosed on at a rapid rate. To say things were bad and getting worse would be like saying the ocean is a little wet.

When Roosevelt was elected, the people were voting against the status quo, the way things had "always been done." The way things had "always been done" simply wasn't working anymore. The Hoover administration did little to nothing to help the people. Until FDR, though, this was the tacit understanding between the citizens of the U.S. and the government: the government existed to do governmental things like keep the mail going and maybe fight a war or two. There was a tacit understanding that the government had no real responsibility to help the day to day life of its people. The Roosevelt administration was a paradigm shift in the relationship between the U.S. government and its people; as now the government concerned itself in a very real way in the quality of life of its citizens. It was quite eye opening me to think of the governed and the government in terms of an almost personal relationship.

I've always had this image in my head that this kind hearted president just showed up and hammered out some legislation, etc. that helped people - almost like FDR did it all by himself! The reality is is that except for his CCC, most of what comprised the "New Deal" was thought of and fought for (and against) by his "inner circle." This book really gets into the details of what legislation was passed, who came up with it, who fought against it and for it; and what the outcome was.

I found the "WHY" of the puzzle pieces of the New Deal legislative alphabet soup more eye opening than anything else. Like why a 40 hour work week? I always thought it was so people wouldn't drop over from overwork! We take so much of the "New Deal" that we are left with today for granted that we never really ask why and how. So why fight for a 40 hour workweek? It wasn't so workers could have a little rest. The reality was there was so little work to go around, limiting one person to a 40 hour work week might just make it possible for someone else to be at least somewhat gainfully employed. Frances Perkins crusade to better working conditions was a noble one to be sure, but when you read that she personally witnessed the tragic Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire in New York City, it makes her passion so much more vivid. Paying farmers to NOT grow crops seems ridiculous, until the author explains that during WWI U.S. farmers were growing more and selling their crops overseas as the European farmers, the war on their front door step, were being adversely affected. With the war over, though, the European market for American crops was simply no longer there and the oversupply here was driving prices down. The crisis in the farm belt was such that farmers were banding together into what seemed like little pseudo armies and were close to instigating something akin to another Civil War within the country. To say things were bad and getting worse would be like saying the ocean is a little wet. Somebody had to do something - anything - and Roosevelt and his Cabinet were bound and determined to alleviate the suffering however they could.

Cohen does such a good job of putting everything into context on the international and national stage, that this little book is equal parts history, political science, sociology and economics lesson. It was quite an eye opening book and I think a pretty important one. It certainly helped me understand that period of history a lot better and I have tremendous respect for those people who worked tirelessly to simply help the American people then. There were a few times I wish he would have explained certain things in a little more detail, and times where I wish he wouldn't. It did become a little difficult for me to keep track of all the players and the alphabet soup of the New Deal (I had the same problem with Goodwin's excellent book as well though, so I think that's just me!) I'm sure this is not the most comprehensive book on the New Deal, but it's an excellent place to start for an overall view.

I would give this one a solid four stars.

Excellent review of Nothing to Fear avidmom. You say it is a little book - how little?

Excellent review of Nothing to Fear: Fdr's inner circle avidmom. You say it is a little book - how little?

Thanks baswood! Maybe I was thinking in "relative" terms there as the last FDR book I read was a bit of a tome! This one weighs in at around 300 + pages with plenty of notes in the back.

Great review!

This sounds like a good supplement to The Path To Power: The Years of Lyndon Johnson Vol.1 by Robert Caro, which had me thinking I'd like to know more. Encouraging that Nothing To Fear is only 300 odd pages.

>76 Oandthegang: Those Caro books about LBJ were listed as one of the best books about America's past in one of the American Heritage magazines I found in my old stack of those magazines. I don't know much about LBJ. My mother named her dearly departed cat after him! (I don't know why.)

I would highly recommend Nothing to Fear.

Yesterday I pulled an old American Heritage magazine out of the stacks I have here and found Caro's books on LBJ listed as one of the 100 best books about America's past.

Terriffic review of Nothing to Fear. Would make a wonderful audio book.

Somewhere along the line i was under the impression that Roosevelts's New Deal plans were largely policies started under Hoover (is Bill Bryson to blame?) - and i have been wonderinghpw true that is.

Don't know if such policies were started under Hoover, but if they were I'd be surprised if Hoover was a supporter. According to Caro, when delegations came to the White House begging Hoover to endorse direct federal aid for relief, or increased spending on public works, he said "As long as I sit at this desk, they won't get by". He also told Congress he would veto legislation aimed at tariff reform, so having had the McNary-Haugen tax reform bill vetoed twice by Cooldge, Congress didn't bother to try again. Questioned why, if the Depression were over (in December 1930) there were so many men still on the street selling apples, Hoover replied "Many people have left their jobs for the more profitable one of selling apples."

Yes, well, you would, wouldn't you?

>79 dchaikin: Thanks Dan!

>79 dchaikin: & 80 The general view is that Hoover did absolutely nothing, which is mostly, but not entirely true (guess it's a matter of perspective.) But, whatever help he did give out was so little or came with strings attached so that it was no help at all - or even worse. Like, hmm, bankrupt states, we'll send $$ to 'em, but with the condition that all that money be paid back so the states were reluctant to take the help.

"Previously, I'd compare my actual feelings to whatever Scientology said I was supposed to feel. If I felt anything else, then surely the problem was with me. As a result, I doubted myself constantly. I doubted whether I was a good person; I doubted whether the people around me were good people; I doubted whether my emotions were appropriate - all because Scientology made me feel that I was the problem."

"The last thing you want to tell a person who is brainwashed is that they are brainwashed."



Jenna Miscavige Hill is the niece of David Miscavige, the head of the church of Scientology today. She was a third generation Scientologist, her maternal and paternal grandparents were "public Scientologist." Her Uncle Dave, her father's younger brother, dedicated himself to a lifetime of service to the church early in his life, even dropping out of high school to do so. Her parents also decided to devote their lives to the church and left the East Coast to come and serve the church on the West Coast, first settling in LA and then being promoted into the Sea Org, one of the highest levels of hierarchy in the church, which required a move to Hemet, CA where the International base is located (referred to as "Int" by the author). Jenna was only a toddler at the time the big move(s) took place. She knew no other world but the world of Scientology. Because of her parents' positions, Jenna's point of view was from someone at the very center of the universe created by Scientology. And wow, what a world that is! Her personal account of growing up inside the church from a very young girl being schooled at "the Ranch", the boarding school (of sorts) for kids of Sea Org parents at the Int base in Hemet where children were treated as little adults and expected to behave as such, to her last days inside the organization where she began simply saying "No" to those in "authority" is a gripping story.

She gives us a very clear understanding of what the day to day life of her life inside Scientology was; how disconnected she was from the outside world and her parents. Her life seemed to be divided into sections of time living at the Hemet, CA base, the FLAG base in Florida and the West Coast base near Hollywood (where the Celebrity Centre is.) For the most part, she seemed incredibly devoted to the church; the nagging doubts came along maybe in her early teen years but they were quickly suppressed. The catalyst for her decision to leave came about, ironically enough, on a mission she and her husband were sent on for the church in Australia. The couple had more freedom there and had a chance to see another way of life: "Because the level of monitoring we faced was so much less than what it had been, it made it much easier to put aside the issues with which I'd been struggling. Even though I still disagreed with aspects of the Church, I was more relaxed than I'd been in years, not to mention well fed, well rested, and having a lot of fun." It's a bit mind boggling to hear someone in their early 20s say the phrase "... more relaxed than I'd been in years." Australia was a turning point in her life for other reasons as well: I had been under the impression that everyone loved L. Ron Hubbard, and that Scientology was flourishing and expanding all over the world. However, it seemed like most people in Australia did not even know what it was, and those who did often were skeptical." Being exposed to just a little bit of freedom and a life outside the confining bubble of Scientology proved to be a life altering experience. Once back State side after a taste of new ideas and a less regimented (and relatively normal) life in Australia, things looked different: "Suddenly, everywhere around us, we could see not the rules we had to obey, but the freedoms they made us give up." Finally, Jenna came to the conclusion that she "... just couldn't continue to live in a place that had to control my every thought and move."

She did leave; albeit not without a battle. According to LRH, the only reason people left staff was because they had done bad things that they were hiding from others ..... the confessional was a requirement to route out properly. If you refused the confessional, you would be declared a Suppressive Person." Being declared a SP - anyone against Scientology - meant that person could not "... have any contact with any Scientologist whatsoever." This meant, of course, having no contact with any family members or even spouses, who remained in the church. Even after she (and her husband) left the church, the church still tried to level a great amount of control over her life, going to great lengths to pull the plug on a televised interview and even "summoning" the couple back a year later for their equivalent of a court hearing!

This was a great read for me. While I don't think it's going to go down in history as great literature, it certainly is a compelling story. Parts of the story like yelling at square glass ashtrays for hours as a training exercise would have been hysterically funny if it weren't quite so ridiculous and sad; other parts of Jenna's firsthand account were flat out scary. At the end of it, I was left really admiring the author's courage for coming forward and for her compassion for other ex Scientologist. Instead of being bitter about her lost childhood (which she would have every right to be), she seems much more enthusiastic and appreciative of her new life and family, motherhood being a privilege she might not have enjoyed if she would have stayed on staff in the church, and her opportunity to reach out and support other ex Scientologist through her website exscientologykids.org.

Highly recommended.

*******************************************************************

exscientologykids.com

The Nightline Interview that the church tried to block: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJu-j4aa90Q

A more recent interview plugging the book from "The View": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NFshbZoDrE

Thank you for taking the time to show us some of the details. I've been curious about Scientology since I first heard of it, but hints of savagery always kept me from looking too closely. I am now cured of my curiosity about it.

Robert

>83 Mr.Durick: I'm glad to have helped cure you of your curiosity.

>82 avidmom: Very interesting.

Great review. We humans do some strange stuff.

Didn't curiosity kill the cat?

Oh dear! those scientologists.

>85 NanaCC: Certainly was interesting, and a bit nauseating!

>86 dchaikin: We humans do some strange stuff.

Ain't that the truth! Her story was understandable; she was born into the church. What the pull is for other people, though, I still don't know.

And, like Mr. Durick, not sure I want to .....

>87 baswood: Oh dear! those scientologists.
Haha. That sounds like a great title for a book, baswood!

You Can Begin Again by Joyce Meyer

I always like Joyce Meyer's common sense, no-nonsense approach to applying Christian principles to everyday life. This book is no different. Because of where I find myself in life right now, what she said really resonated with me. No deep theology or anything controversial here; but a lot of faith-filled common sense. A useful, practical and uplifting book for people who find themselves needing to "start over" with some interesting stories of some well known people sprinkled throughout. I've read a few of Meyer's books and this one is probably my favorite.

4 stars.