The Bookman’s Tale

The Bookman’s Tale by Charlie Lovett.

Paperback: 384 pages
Publisher: Penguin Books(May 27, 2014)
ISBN-10: 0143125389

 

 

From Booklist

Antiquarian bookseller Peter Byerly immerses himself in his trade to overcome grief from the loss of his beloved wife a few months earlier. Now plying his trade in England’s Cotswolds instead of the North Carolina site of his tragedy, Byerly happens across a small watercolor portrait of a woman who looks startlingly like his late wife. And so begins an obsessive hunt to find out the origins of this painting. Lovett shifts his narrative around in both time and setting, recounting the lovers’ first meeting, in the library at a southern college, and the blossoming of their seemingly improbable love affair: he a bookish, repressed teen, and she an heiress. Byerly discovers the portrait’s Victorian provenance, and then the author moves his story even further back, to the time of Shakespeare. Fans of mysteries, of love stories, and of rare books will all find moments in Lovett’s novel to treasure. --Mark Knoblauch

A person obsessed with the authenticity of old books and documents…  how could this NOT be a good read?  The answer is:  it’s a good read.

It jumped around a bit and I wasn’t sure I could keep straight where I was when, but I did manage and that alone says it couldn’t have been too hard because one of my favorite words is :  huh?.  

This was a good incorporation of a mystery, murder and love…not much left when you have all that!

I can’t say I have any big interest in “first editions” or “authenticity” of things..but this book absolutely kept me opening it over and over.  I was also glad it had short chapter, which is another thing that makes me read more, and more often.

Happily this is my 4th book for June and seeing as how badly my reading has dropped off due to “doctors” and such, I feel quite accomplished that the four books were interesting enough to keep me reading!

My books for June were:

Get Happy.........................Gerald Clarke.........(528 pgs)(Judy Garland)
This Time Together................Carol Burnett.........(288 pgs)
The Devil's Workshop..............Alex Grecian.........(386 pgs)(Scotland Yard Murder Squad)
The Bookman's Tale................Charlie Lovett........(384 pgs)

The Devil’s Workshop

The Devil’s Workshop by Alex Grecian.

Series: Scotland Yard's Murder Squad (Book 3)

Hardcover: 400 pages
Publisher: Putnam Adult (May 20, 2014)
ISBN-10: 0399166432

They thought he was gone, but they were wrong. Jack the Ripper is loose in London once more.
Scotland Yard’s Murder Squad faces the most shocking case of its existence, in the extraordinary new historical thriller from the author of the acclaimed national bestsellers The Yard and The Black Country.
London, 1890. A small group of the city’s elite, fed up with the murder rate, have made it their business to capture violent criminals and mete out their own terrible brand of retribution. Now they are taking it a step further: They have arranged for four murderers to escape from prison, and into the group’s hands.
But the plan goes wrong. The killers elude them, and now it is up to Walter Day, Nevil Hammersmith, and the rest of Scotland Yard’s Murder Squad to hunt the convicts down before they can resume their bloody spree. But the Murder Squad may already be too late. The killers have retribution in mind, and one of them is heading straight toward a member of the Murder Squad, and his family.
And that isn’t even the worst of it. During the escape, one of the killers has stumbled upon the location of another notorious murderer, one thought gone for good, but who is now prepared to join forces with them.
And Saucy Jack has learned some new tricks while he’s been away.

This is the 3rd book by Alex Grecian about Scotland Yard’s Murder Squad that I’ve read.

I have to say I’ve liked ALL the books and glad to know there will be more along the way!

However, having said that I have enjoyed this latest book, I will say that it may not be to everyone’s liking, even if they have read the first 2 books.  This book (since the evil character is “maybe” Jack the Ripper) is  a lot more descriptive in the murders and what is done to the bodies.  

And having said that… if you’ve ever read anything on Jack the Ripper before then the descriptions in this book are no worse then any other.   Surprisingly, I may have said a mental “ewww” here and there but it didn’t stop me from reading every word of the book.

I like this “murder squad” Grecian has created.  I think it’s created lol, it may have been true for all I know!  Walter Day and Nevil Hammersmith are excellent characters for this type of book… and I look forward to the next edition…whenever that may be!

A Perfect Pair

Meet Pete and Theresa.  You won’t find a more perfect couple.

I’ve know them for a super long time..and they’ve always been part of each other since I’ve known them.

When they were younger they adopted a baby girl named Angel.  Later they added a set of twin girls.  I have always been amazed at Theresa being a mom to them all, the perfect wife for Pete, and holding down a job at the same time. And then still finds time for her friends.

And Pete….. well, Pete has been my savior more than once.  Most recently just the day before my cataract surgery when he drove 1 1/2 hrs to help me once again.  Pete has also the most calming personality. He can make ME, who is on anxiety pills, able to stay calm.  I think Theresa should rent him out..he does better then any counselor!

On his most recent trip to save me once again, Theresa, proving that she and Pete are not 2 people but 1 single entity, sent me a gorgeous Orchard! (see photo’s below)  I have to admit to being dumb about Orchards even though Theresa talked to me on the phone about it’s care.  I can now research some now that I can see enough to read !!

How do you thank people like this?  Especially when I know any time I get in a panic over my computer or other techy stuff all I have to do is call Pete and he calms me right down.  Definitely better then any pill a doctor has given me!

Two most special people to me.  (And their daughters I am sure)

Thank you Pete and Theresa … more than I can ever say .

This Time Together

This Time Together by Carol Burnett.

Paperback: 288 pages
Publisher: Three Rivers Press(March 22, 2011)
ISBN-10: 030746119X

From Booklist

In her second book, comedy legend Burnett looks back fondly on her long and successful career in short, easily digestible chapters that part the curtain on her private life. Told in a chatty, intimate way, the stories encompass the star’s childhood; early days as an actress doing bit parts in New York City, appearing on game shows and various variety shows; her 11 years hosting The Carol Burnett Show; and life after the show ended its run. Readers will enjoy the comical reminiscences included, such as how she once used her famous Tarzan yell to disarm a mugger, funny interactions with fans who recognize her on the street, and the origin of famous scenes from the show, such as Scarlett O’Hara in a curtain-rod dress. Burnett doesn’t shy away from sad subjects and occasionally touches on personal losses. She also dishes about her famous costars and friends, including Jimmy Stewart, Lucille Ball, Cary Grant, Julie Andrews, and, of course, Carol Burnett Show regulars Harvey Korman, Tim Conway, Vicki Lawrence, and Lyle Waggoner. Fans of both the show and the actress will enjoy this mostly lighthearted though sometimes poignant look back at Burnett’s career. --Kathleen Hughes

You can’t ask for an easier read than this book.  Most chapters are only one or 2 pages long. And many pages wind up having a chuckle to even some guffaws before those 2 pages are over.

As the above review tells you, Carol keeps this book on the positive side, but there are also moments that can tug at your heart.

The chapters fly by as she speaks of all the people involved in her show and many of the guests that went from making her a “fan girl” to a life time friend.

This book was totally enjoyed and if you ever watched her show I think you’d like this book too. 

Carol is iconic, and in her show she always let her talented cast have center stage when things “got out of hand” ..which just means Tim Conway and Harvey Korman being in uncontrolled laughter .

Go ahead..

Read it..

You’ll enjoy it!

The Blue Angels…

As most who follow my blog or facebook knows, not so long ago at the small airport of Vero Beach was an air show.  The guest stars were the Blue Angels.

I had never seen them before (or any like them). I live close enough that many of them flew right over where I live.  I was thrilled no end!  For reasons, I assume are from my depression and anxieties, I cried.  But then, something happened to me that hasn’t happened in well over a year… I looked forward to “tomorrow” to see them again!

The simple fact that for 4 days I looked forward to looking up in the sky and to feel the rumble and hear the sounds of their jets, led me to write them a letter after they had gone.  I wanted them to know that besides being “fancy jets” and besides doing shows to entice young men to join the service, that they made a very old lady smile and “look forward” to the next day.

It may not mean a lot to these young men, but it meant a lot to me and so I wrote them and told them so..

Today as I went out to check my mail this large mailing envelope leaned against the wall of my door… when I opened the envelope..I cried…again! geez!  The Blue Angels had done it again.. Needless to say, I wish they were here !  I still can’t believe that someone in their office took the time to send this old lady such a gift… I can never thank them enough. Never.  And I hope some day I get to see them again!

 

 

Get Happy

Get Happy by Gerald Clarke

Paperback: 528 pages
Publisher: Delta (March 6, 2001)
ISBN-10: 0385335156

 

From Publishers Weekly

Judy Garland's on-screen longing for a land where "sorrows melt like lemon drops away above the chimney tops" was answered with a life plagued by emotional agony, dependency on drugs and alcohol, exploitative relationships, suicide attempts and physical violence. This exhaustively researched and illuminating biography by Clarke, whose bestselling 1988 life of Truman Capote won critical praise, is as compassionate as it is wrenching. It follows the basic themes established by the best of the more than 20 biographies and memoirs of Garland that have appeared since her 1969 death (in particular, Gerald Frank's 1975 bio, authorized by her family). But while most portray Garland as tormented by inexorable and sometimes inexplicable inner demons, Clarke brings to his work a far harsher evaluation of how the singer was treated by her employers, family and lovers: her mother gave her amphetamines at the age of four; producers at MGM sexually harassed her as a young teen; husband Vincente Minnelli cheated on her with men soon after their marriage; husband Sid Luft stole millions from her; fourth husband Mark Herron had an affair with Garland's son-in-law, Peter Allen (then married to Liza Minnelli). Many of Clarke's revelations are of a sexual nature--he mentions affairs with Sinatra, Glenn Ford, Yul Brynner and Tyrone Power as well as with women. Other revelations, such as of Garland attacking her young son, Joey, with a butcher's knife, are simply shocking. Yet Clarke never exploits this volatile material as cheap gossip; instead, he deftly weaves it into a detailed, respectful and haunting portrait. (Apr.)

It’s sometimes strange how you think you know a lot about a celebrity and yet, of course, you don’t.

Oh, I knew that Judy’s mother was the one who started her on her problems with “drugs”. Her excuse was that Judy earned money that they needed so it was ok to give her pills to sleep and pills to vitalize her .

Then when MGM came along they “owned” Judy and basically the pills just continued.

As I read this book it seemed her whole life she searched for love …love like she had from her father.  Unconditional love.  Not the sort her mother doled out.  Most all the men Judy thought she was in love with and married were much older then she was.  Always searching for the father figure. And someone who would take care of her and her money.  Instead they all used her and spent her money and this multitalented lady ended up (more than once)  broke.

Her choice of men stunk.  Liza’s dad, Vincente Minnelli was gay. But back then everyone hid that fact and married so they seemed “normal”.  How horrible to have to live like that.  But that’s how it was. One of her other husband’s, Sid Luft, father to Lorna and Joey really went through Judy’s money like it was never ending. 

I felt somewhat like this author wanted to shock people with all of Judy’s “affairs” and “marriages”, and yet they were what always caused her breakdowns and always left her feeling unloved and unappreciated.

Judy Garland had a very hard and sad life.  She had moments of glory and happiness, but they never lasted long. I find that to this day I feel sad for Judy Garland.  She gave all she had and got little in return but drugs, getting used, and unhappy.  But the book did make me feel I understood how this all happened to her..and there were people along the way that really thought they could help Judy .  It’s too bad they didn’t succeed.