James Ross is arriving in New York City, after years of unfulfilling work for his grandfather in the Philippines, to receive the sizeable inheritance James Ross is arriving in New York City, after years of unfulfilling work for his grandfather in the Philippines, to receive the sizeable inheritance the grim old man had surprisingly left him upon his death. No sooner is his ship docked than a purported distant relative he's sure has mistaken him for someone else lures him to Connecticut to help her with the terrible trouble she's in. A fine old thriller by an early female master of the genre....more
This novella is just interesting enough to enjoy finishing as a free LibriVox audiobook while working out at the gym. It's humorous, built mostly arouThis novella is just interesting enough to enjoy finishing as a free LibriVox audiobook while working out at the gym. It's humorous, built mostly around the conceit that criminals find life in the penitentiary to be grand, but are impeded in their efforts to return there, after the misfortune of release, by the legal system and do-gooders....more
Crane wrote these thirteen stories in the last year of his short, tempestuous life, as he was dying, and they were published posthumously. Fictional WCrane wrote these thirteen stories in the last year of his short, tempestuous life, as he was dying, and they were published posthumously. Fictional Whilomville stands in for Port Jervis, New York, where he spent much of his childhood. The linked stories relate the mischievous adventures of Jimmie Trescott and the other children who live in or visit the town, and, sometimes, the reactions of their associated adults. They hold up pretty well, except for occasional racist behavior and language of the period....more
I enjoyed this novel for the vivid depictions of settings I'm unfamiliar with, i.e. Queens, Martinique, and Burkina Faso, and the perspective of its pI enjoyed this novel for the vivid depictions of settings I'm unfamiliar with, i.e. Queens, Martinique, and Burkina Faso, and the perspective of its protagonist, Marie Mitchell, a Black FBI agent under occasional contract with the CIA. Although 'Spy' is in the title, and Marie is a spy whose mother and sister were also spies, this is really a novel that happens to be set in the world of espionage rather than a thriller. There's not much tradecraft or high tech gadgetry, but some suggestion of less than noble FBI activities against Black activist groups and CIA involvement in the 1987 assassination of Thomas Sankara, revolutionary President of Burkina Faso....more
We were grinders and scrappers. Showbiz may seem glamorous, but each battle is won in the trenches with heavy doses of perspiration and preparation. WWe were grinders and scrappers. Showbiz may seem glamorous, but each battle is won in the trenches with heavy doses of perspiration and preparation. We spent our nights doing two sets of homework: our assignments for school and our run-throughs of the next day's lines with Dad.
I'm a couple of years older than Ron Howard and grew up watching him on The Andy Griffith Show, in the movie The Music Man, and on Happy Days. It was a pleasure to read this well-written, dual memoir by Ron and his younger brother Clint, which focuses on the lives of their parents, their childhoods, and the beginnings of their adult careers. Their dad, Rance, and mom, Jean, both actors with realistic aspirations for Hollywood success, generously and without missing a beat, shifted gears to support and coach Ron and Clint as child actors, and to keep them grounded. Ron worked hard to transition from acting into directing in his twenties, while Clint struggled with addictions to alcohol and drugs, but overcame them and achieved a successful, lifelong career as a character actor. Highly recommended, especially for anyone who's watched the boys on screen....more
I enjoyed listening to this novella, only Wharton's second book and my first of hers. Early on, New York attorney Stephen Glennard sells for publicatiI enjoyed listening to this novella, only Wharton's second book and my first of hers. Early on, New York attorney Stephen Glennard sells for publication a large collection of letters he'd received from the late Margaret Aubyn, a literary giant who'd loved him in spite of his indifference to her, and the proceeds allow him to propose to and wed his beloved Alex Trent. Although they are published without identifying him as the recipient, the rest of the story explores his increasing sense of guilt for betraying Aubyn's confidence, a topic of much discussion in Glennard's social circle, as the two-volume collection becomes a best-seller, and how his shame impacts the marriage. This book reminded me of The Aspern Papers, by Wharton's close friend Henry James, and I'd recommend reading them both to compare and contrast....more
I should have done more homework before listening to this audiobook, as I was a little disappointed that Futrelle's famous detective Professor AugustuI should have done more homework before listening to this audiobook, as I was a little disappointed that Futrelle's famous detective Professor Augustus S.F.X. Van Dusen, "The Thinking Machine", doesn't appear in it. But that's on me. It's an entertaining enough short mystery featuring a threat to the global diamond market, murder, theft, blackmail, love, and the latest technology of 1909....more
Somewhere in the city of New York there are four or five still-unknown objects that belong together. Once together they'll make a work of art. That's Somewhere in the city of New York there are four or five still-unknown objects that belong together. Once together they'll make a work of art. That's Cornell's premise, his metaphysics, and his religion, which I wish to understand.
A master of the prose poem, Simic has said that the form "is a monster-child of two incompatible impulses, one which wants to tell a story and another, equally powerful, which wants to freeze an image, or a bit of language, for our scrutiny." Here he describes the impact Cornell's boxes have:
They tempt the viewer in two opposite directions. One is to look and admire the elegance and other visual properties of the composition, and the other is to make up stories about what one sees.
The similarity in approach to their art makes Simic an intuitive and sympathetic choice to interpret Cornell's eccentric, surrealistic shadow box assemblages in this brief collection of mini-essays and prose poems.
This is what Cornell is after, too. How to construct a vehicle of reverie, an object that would enrich the imagination of the viewer and keep him company forever....more
Anita Loos led a fascinating life as an actress and writer, with a career spanning more than 80 years, working with D.W. Griffith, Douglas Fairbanks, Anita Loos led a fascinating life as an actress and writer, with a career spanning more than 80 years, working with D.W. Griffith, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., William Randolph Hearst, Jean Harlow, Carol Channing, Helen Hayes, and a Cast of Thousands, the title of one of her memoirs, but she is best remembered as the author of this comic Jazz Age classic, which inspired a Broadway musical and two movies.
The novel in the form of the diary of blonde flapper Lorelei Lee, of Little Rock, Arkansas, reports on her seemingly innocent conquest of nearly every wealthy "gentleman" she encounters, in New York City and across Europe, accompanied by her "unrefined" friend Dorothy Shaw. The free LibriVox audiobook is perfectly narrated by Jenn Broda, verbal gymnastics, malapropisms, and all, and I recommend it. ...more
The excellent narration by Bob Neufeld of the free LibriVox edition I listened to expressed subtle notes of whimsical humor in the early recounting ofThe excellent narration by Bob Neufeld of the free LibriVox edition I listened to expressed subtle notes of whimsical humor in the early recounting of Bartleby's short career in the narrator's nineteenth century Wall Street law office, but left a sudden, tragic aftertaste. After a successful start copying legal documents, the enigmatic Bartleby first declines to attend to any other task assigned, then refuses even to continue copying, but also will not leave the office. The narrator is stunned and exasperated, yet torn by moral considerations and unwilling to evict him or summon the police. Fascinating, thought-provoking, recommended....more
I enjoyed both of the Goodwin biographies I've read, Team of Rivals, her epic account of Abraham Lincoln's genius in juggling the outsize personalitieI enjoyed both of the Goodwin biographies I've read, Team of Rivals, her epic account of Abraham Lincoln's genius in juggling the outsize personalities and agendas of his cabinet while leading the nation through the Civil War, and No Ordinary Time, her Pulitzer Prize-winning history of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt's wartime years in the White House.
This memoir of her own childhood on Long Island during the 1940s and 50s gives insight into the origins of her interest in the past and exceptional storytelling skills, but it's also a warm reminiscence of her youth, weaving together life within her close family, her Catholic upbringing and faith, and the love of baseball and the Brooklyn Dodgers her father passed on to her. While she mostly avoids looking too deeply into her interior life and that of her family members, she anchors their story firmly into what was going on in the nation at the time, touching on the civil rights movement, the trial and execution of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, the McCarthy hearings, Sputnik, the changing expectations of women, and more.
The narration by Suzanne Toren on the Recorded Books edition was excellent and the memoir was a perfect choice for a long driving trip to a family wedding my wife and I just returned from....more
Belle da Costa Greene (1879-1950) feared that if the public discovered that she was colored, passing as white, even after her death, it would tarnish Belle da Costa Greene (1879-1950) feared that if the public discovered that she was colored, passing as white, even after her death, it would tarnish both her own considerable reputation as a successful career woman and the stature of the Pierpont Morgan Library she had curated, so she destroyed most of her private papers. Co-authors Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray build upon extensive research into the public record with educated speculation about her relationships with her family, split over the decision to pass, her employer, financier J. Pierpont Morgan, and her lover, art historian Bernard Berenson. This is a fascinating, previously little-known story, well-written, and well-performed on the audiobook by narrator Robin Miles....more
It was, she cried silently, enough to suffer as a woman, an individual, on one's own account, without having to suffer for the race as well.
Irene RedfIt was, she cried silently, enough to suffer as a woman, an individual, on one's own account, without having to suffer for the race as well.
Irene Redfield, a biracial woman, has been happy with her marriage to a successful black doctor in 1920s Harlem, their two sons, and her volunteer work on behalf of the Negro Welfare League. Then childhood friend Clare Kendry, also biracial but now "passing" as white and married to a virulently racist international financier, reconnects with her. Irene is both attracted to Clare's physical beauty and repulsed by her amorality, then jealous and frightened that Clare and her husband are having an affair. Their fraught relationship fractures the foundations of Irene's identity and beliefs, and builds to a melodramatic, yet enigmatic, climax.
This short novel is a fascinating study of "passing" as white and straight, but also provides much food for thought about class, motherhood and family roles, black attitudes toward skin color, and more, as evidenced by the substantial academic and popular literature it has generated, which is only likely to grow in the wake of the recent film adaptation by director Rebecca Hall. I'd recommend reading the book first, to provide context for understanding the many changes Hall makes in the film....more
On the afternoon of Super Bowl Sunday 2022, the internet and the power grid fail globally, darkening the screens of the world's phones, laptops, and tOn the afternoon of Super Bowl Sunday 2022, the internet and the power grid fail globally, darkening the screens of the world's phones, laptops, and televisions. We experience this through the words, spoken and thought, of five people intending to watch the game at an apartment in Manhattan, including two who arrive after surviving the blackout-caused crash-landing of their flight from Paris. Their thoughts and speeches speculate about the impact of the unexplained loss of technological networks on the nature of reality. While I found DeLillo's exploration of some similar territory in White Noise to be interesting, I never got engaged with this novella. It felt as if the stage had been set and then the curtain came down, perhaps inevitable given that the book ends only hours after the blackout occurs....more
I knew of Jim Gaffigan but hadn't ever experienced any of his comedy, when I decided to check out this audiobook for a recent long, hot driving trip. I knew of Jim Gaffigan but hadn't ever experienced any of his comedy, when I decided to check out this audiobook for a recent long, hot driving trip. It was a great choice. These are humorous essays, read by the author, about his and his wife, Jeannie's, journey through parenting five children in their tiny, two-bedroom apartment in the Bowery, from home birthing all five, through field trips to New York City park bathrooms, Disney World, and an endless series of other people's kids' birthday parties. He explains how lying to children, stealing their candy, and leaving them with babysitters whose primary qualification is that they are warm bodies, are inevitable and sound parenting choices. The genuine love that Gaffigan has for his wife and children comes through and leavens the sarcasm and exaggeration....more
The difference between flying in an airplane, walking, and riding a bike is the same as that between looking through a telescope, a microscope, and a The difference between flying in an airplane, walking, and riding a bike is the same as that between looking through a telescope, a microscope, and a movie camera. Each allows for a particular way of seeing. From an airplane, the world is a distant representation of itself. On two legs, we are condemned to a plethora of microscopic detail. But the person suspended over two wheels, a meter above the ground, can see things as if through the lens of a movie camera: he can linger on minutiae and choose to pass over what is unnecessary.
I loved this little collection of essays, dense with aphorism and anecdote. The reader travels with Luiselli on foot or bicycle on sidewalks in Venice, Mexico City, New York; imagines moving into and out of apartments; considers the nature of relingos, oddly-shaped pieces of land, of unknown or vague ownership, on the edges of urban public areas. She is always reminded of a pertinent and provocative observation of Brodsky, Pound, Pessoa, Beckett, Barthes, Duras, Sebald, Unamuno. She is always thinking about reading and writing.
I suddenly lose the will to continue writing. I get up from the desk, impatient and defeated, and go to the bookcase. With the persistence of a mosquito around a lightbulb, I prowl the shelves in search of that book, that page, that underlined phrase I vaguely remember, but which-if I could only reread it-would finally give me the confidence to complete my recently abandoned idea.
This is definitely worth the short time it takes to read, even with its limitations and controversies, as it is one of the few narratives of slavery iThis is definitely worth the short time it takes to read, even with its limitations and controversies, as it is one of the few narratives of slavery in the North.
Isabella Baumfree was born in Ulster County, New York ca. 1797, her slave name including the last name of her Dutch owners. This narrative tells of her life with this family and several successive owners, her escape from slavery in 1827, her successful lawsuit against the white owner who had illegally sold her son, her early engagement with several Christian denominations and sects, her decision to change her name to Sojourner Truth in 1843, and emergence as a well-known abolitionist and women's rights activist and speaker.
This original narrative was published in 1850 and, therefore, doesn't cover the remaining more than three decades of Sojourner's activism before her death in 1883 in her home in Battle Creek, Michigan. The narrative is also problematic because of the intrusiveness of the editorial comments of Olive Gilbert, Sojourner's friend, to whom she dictated her story, being unable to read or write herself. Read this Duke University Library blog posting for an interesting take on the authorship of the narrative: https://blogs.library.duke.edu/rubens....
Read this and you may decide to tackle one of the many more comprehensive biographies of this remarkable woman....more
I wasn't taught anything about Black history, literature, or culture in elementary or high school in Iowa in the 50s and 60s, nor in my undergrad and I wasn't taught anything about Black history, literature, or culture in elementary or high school in Iowa in the 50s and 60s, nor in my undergrad and grad programs. If you are as ignorant of this essential American experience as me, I can recommend reading this brief classic as a starting point.
On this unsettled Independence Day Eve 2020, the following are among many passages that echo in my mind as I look back on the more than half a century since Baldwin wrote the two essays in this book.
To his nephew, also James:
There is no reason for you to try to become like white people and there is no basis whatever for their impertinent assumption that they must accept you.
On his experience as a teen minister in Harlem:
When I watched all the children, their copper, brown, and beige faces staring up at me as I taught Sunday school, I felt that I was committing a crime in talking about the gentle Jesus, in telling them to reconcile themselves to their misery on earth in order to gain the crown of eternal life. Were only Negroes to gain this crown? Was Heaven, then, to be merely another ghetto?
On his name:
I am called Baldwin because I was either sold by my African tribe or kidnapped out of it into the hands of a white Christian named Baldwin, who forced me to kneel at the foot of the cross. I am, then, both visibly and legally the descendant of slaves in a white, Protestant country, and this is what it means to be an American Negro, this is who he is-a kidnapped pagan, who was once sold like an animal and treated like one, who was once defined by the American Constitution as "three-fifths" of a man, and who, according to the Dred Scott decision, had no rights that a white man was bound to respect. And today, a hundred years after his technical emancipation, he remains-with the possible exception of the American Indian-the most despised creature in his country....more
Same old, same old. A man retraces the steps of his youth in order to determine where he has been and where he is. Your basic mystery story.
So does RoSame old, same old. A man retraces the steps of his youth in order to determine where he has been and where he is. Your basic mystery story.
So does Rosenblatt describe the book early on. I quarrel with the suggestion that it's your basic mystery story, as I quarrel with the choice of title, The Boy Detective. There isn't much mystery. Rosenblatt literally does retrace the steps of his 1940s-1950s youth in and around Manhattan's Gramercy Park neighborhood, ostensibly on a long walk after a class in memoir writing he has returned to teach at Stony Brook University's Manhattan campus.
While his boyhood fantasy of playing detective provides some interesting and amusing stories on this walk, I didn't feel that this aspect of the memoir was significant enough to deserve the top billing it gets in the title, either. A better title for the book might have been A Walker in the City, except, of course, Alfred Kazin already used it.
All that aside, I enjoyed this stream-of-consciousness journey through New York's past and Rosenblatt's life. He tells his memoir-writing students:
your memoir is not about you. So stay out of it. Keep clear of your memoir, except in those instances where your idiosyncratic, weird, freakish life speaks for others, for all lives. As you write, let your mind wander, for wandering is necessary for your memoir.
He doesn't just talk the talk, he walks the walk....more
Bill on GR Sabbatical
>
Books:
new-york
(56)
