Beach Music

Title: Beach Music

Author: Pat Conroy

Pages: 628

Genre: Fiction

Grade: B+

Synopsis: Jack McCall is an American writer living in Rome with his daughter Leah after his wife jumped from a bridge and then his in-laws sued for custody of his precious daughter.  For years he had refused and contact from anybody back home in South Carolina, but within a few days some old friends track him down in Venice and his previous sister-in-law finds him through a private investigator in Rome.  Between the two of them, they convince him to confront his past and return home.

My Review:  I wish that I could recall where I got this book recommendation (It was probably six or seven years ago so if it was you, fess up...).  Pat Conroy is known as a great storyteller and this book was more or less a collection of a ton of stories with the main plotline woven through.  For example, a smattering of the stories covered the following: life in Rome, multiple suicides (one hanging and one bridge jumper), a monk in hiding who killed a couple while making love, a priest who killed an orphan-master that was raping his sister by setting him on fire. a Palestinian terrorist operation as the protagonist is trying to catch a flight, Jack's mother suffers from Leukemia and he and his brothers spend lots of time at the hospital as she struggles through chemotherapy, lovers killed when a bomb explodes the plane they were in, stories of Jewish torture in Auschwitz, Poland, and Kironittska Ukraine, a group of friends that get stranded on a small boat in the ocean when they try and harpoon a manta ray as big as a house, the nesting rituals of the endangered loggerhead turtles, a schizophrenic abducts his mother with leukemia and hides her in a cabin in the woods, a politician running for the governership of South Carolina, a movie producer trying to produce a film about growing up in Waterford, South Carolina, a secret lover killed by an ax into his back, the wife taking revenge on the drunk father by tying him to a bed a setting him on fire, the Nazis despicable crimes against Jews, protests against the Viet Nam War, and many more.  I enjoyed the stories, but it took me a while to read because there was so much going on.

Disclaimer: There is language, death, and crimes that may make you shudder.

Inheritance

Title: Inheritance

Author: Christopher Paolini

Pages: 860

Genre: Fantasy

Grade: A-

Synopsis: The time has come for Eragon Shadeslayer, the elf Arya Shadeslayer, the Varden, the Dwarfs, the Urgals and the Surdans to fight Galbatorix.  While they know they only have the slimmest bit of hope for success, they must sacrifice for the sake of Alagaesia.

My Review: This was a very satisfying conclusion to the Inheritance Series.  There were enough unexpected twists and turns that I never felt like I knew what was going to happen.  The writing quality seemed better than any of the other books (as it should be since Paolini is quite a bit older than he was when Eragon was first published).

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Title: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Author: Rebecca Skloot

Pages: 377

Genre: Non-Fiction

Grade: A-

Synopsis: From the sub-text on the cover of the book that took the author ten years to research and write: "Doctors took her cells without asking.  Those cells never died.  They launched a medical revolution and a multimillion-dollar industry. More than twenty years later, her children found out.  Their lives would never be the same."

My Review: This is a fascinating book about a topic that I knew nothing about.  In 1951, Henrietta Lacks was suffering from a very-aggressive form of cervical cancer.  Her doctors took a small biopsy and sent it to the labs where her cells became the first line of immortal cells.  It is estimated that enough HeLa cells have been grown to weigh 50 million metric tons.  Her cells have contributed to virtually all of the medical advancements in the last 5-6 decades including the polio vaccine, cancer treatments and the effect of the atom bomb on cells.  My single complaint is that it often feels like the book is repeating itself.

From the Book:  "I later learned that while Elsie was at Crownsville, scientists often conducted research on patients there without consent, including one study titled "Pneumoencephalographic and skull X-ray studies in 100 epileptics." Pneumoencephalography was a technique developed in 1919 for taking images of the brain, which floats in a sea of liquid. That fluid protects the brain from damage, but makes it very difficult to X-ray, since images taken through fluid are cloudy. Pneumoencephalography involved drilling holes into the skulls of research subjects, draining the fluid surrounding their brains, and pumping air or helium into the skull in place of the fluid to allow crisp X-rays of the brain through the skull. the side effects--crippling headaches, dizziness, seizures, vomiting--lasted until the body naturally refilled the skull with spinal fluid, which usually took two to three months.  Because pneumoencephalography could cause permanent brain damage and paralysis, it was abandoned in the 1970s. 

"There is no evidence that the scientists who did research on patients  at Crownsville got consent from either the patients of their parents.  Bases on the number of patients listed in the pneumoencephalography studyand the years it was conducted, Lurz told me later, it most likely involved every epileptic child in the hospital including Elsie.  The same is likely true of at lest on other study called "The Use of Deep Temporal Leads in the Study of Psychomotor Epilepsy," which involved inserting metal probes into patients' brains."

The Help

Title: The Help

Author: Kathryn Stockett

Pages: 451

Genre: Historical Fiction

Grade: B+

Synopsis:  Skeeter returns to her home in Mississippi after graduating from Ole Miss in 1962.  The black maid who raised her was no longer employed by her family and nobody will tell her what has happened to her.  Skeeter gets a job with a local newspaper answering mailbag questions about cleaning and household chores and she develops a relationship with one of her friends' maids, Aibileen.  In time, Skeeter begins to draft a book about what it is like for a black woman to work as hired help in Jackson, Mississippi in the height of the civil rights movement.

My Review:  I don't think that I loved this book as much as many others have, but I certainly enjoyed the book, the writing style, and how the story was presented.  I had a hard time putting my finger on the climax and once I did, I felt that it was a little too drawn out for my liking.  I especially enjoy books like this because I find it very difficult to imagine just how bad racial tensions were in the South during this time period.  The country has made great strides since that time.

but enough about me...

Title: but enough about me... A Jersey Girl's Unlikely Adventures Among the Absurdly Famous

Author: Jancee Dunn

Pages: 274

Genre: Autobiography

Grade: B

Synopsis: Jancee Dunn was a pretty regular girl growing up in New Jersey who was given a chance to work at Rolling Stone, on Good Morning America, and as one of the first VJs for MTV2.  Interspersed with her autobiographical stories are lessons that she learned and anecdotes from her numerous interviews with famous musicians and movie stars.

My Review:  I enjoyed this book.  It was light, generally interesting and quite humorous at times.  There isn't anything terribly special about Jancee Dunn, but she is a good storyteller and has plenty of stories to share.

Disclaimer:  There is a bit of language.  As you can imagine, not all of the musicians and actors/actresses are known for their clean language.

Water for Elephants

Title: Water for Elephants

Author: Sara Gruen

Pages: 350

Genre: Fiction

Grade: B+

Synopsis: Fate leads Jacob Janikowski to the Benzini Brothers circus train where he is hired on as the vets Ivy League educated veterinarian.  It is the very beginning of the Great Depression, probably the height of the train-car circus and as the depression deepens, many other circuses are having to throw in the towel.  When the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on earth acquires an elephant for their beautiful star Marlena, things are looking up for the struggling act.

My Review:  The circus has always been magical with its freaks and clowns, gymnasts and performers and exotic animals from all corners of the earth. This book builds a story around the traveling circus that I found to be very interesting and enjoyable.  The plot is a little weak, but it was a fun book nonetheless.