Book Reviews

Book Reviews: No Kidding,

Terri Schlichenmeyer, The Bookworm Sez — Mon, 20 May 2013 18:32:00 GMT

No Kidding: Women Writers on Bypassing Parenthood, edited by Henriette Mantel

Seal Press, $16.00, 248 pages

Another invitation arrived today. That makes six this year.

Everybody but you, it seems, is having a baby, and therefore, a baby shower. Consequently, you’ve bought enough receiving blankets to cover your city and wrapped enough tiny outfits to outfit an infantry of infants.

You’re good with babies. Everybody says so. But for whatever reason, you’ve decided you’ll never have one of your own. And in the new book No Kidding: Women Writers on Bypassing Parenthood, edited by Henriette Mantel, you’ll see why others are making the same choice.

It’s one of those private issues that many people—including total strangers—think it’s OK to ask: “When are you going to start having kids?”

For the writers in this book, the answer is “Never.” It was an easy decision to make … or not. It came after years of soul-searching, or it seemed to be in their genes. Perhaps it dawned on them when they realized they have no desire to be anyone’s Mom. They’ve heard all the arguments, they’ve made their choices and no, they’re not going to “change [their] minds.”

Many of these women have had good experiences with kids—nieces, nephews, children of friends—but they never wanted to give birth. They’re Honorary Aunties all over the place—but some were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Some of the writers were ambivalent (or downright against the idea) all along. They hated dolls, never felt particularly nurturing, were “never mommy material.” One came to realize that the only thing interesting about having a child “is picking the name.” Some thought pregnancy repellant, or parenthood as the end of a dream. One was relieved at a few “close calls;” another suddenly realized that if you have kids, “you have to keep them.”

And then there were the writers for whom the decision was made, not chosen, and their words are filled with regret. But however it happened, there are two things these women know: being able to procreate doesn’t “necessarily mean you should.” And most of them are “too busy living” to dwell on the subject for long.

Does it sometimes seem as though everybody around you is pregnant? Are you a wee bit tired of talk about wee ones? Then you absolutely need to read No Kidding.

You will never feel alone in the Oh-Baby-No-Baby Department when you’re reading this book, because editor Henriette Mantel has gathered the thoughts of more than three dozen childfree (and childless) women writers who are more than happy to weigh in on the subject. Some of the stories are funny. Some fairly drip with droll. Others are militant or a little on the sad side. Together, these essays show readers that choices can be made and it’s okay that not having kids is one of them.

I really liked this book for its reflective nature and because it attempts to show all sides of the non-parenthood issue. If your mind’s made up, I think you’ll like it, too, because what’s inside No Kidding is long overdue.

Stuck in the Middle with You by Jennifer Finney Boylan

Crown, $24.00, 288 pages

When you were younger, you wanted nothing to do with parenthood.

Life was a party then, and having a family was the farthest thing from your mind. Kids changed people, and who wants that? Being a parent was something that happened to somebody else.

Once upon a time, Jennifer Finney Boylan thought that, too. But then she became a father. And then she became a woman and in her new memoir, Stuck in the Middle with You she writes about finding love, discovering life’s sweet spot and being a mommy and a daddy.

Well over 25 years ago, James Boylan fell in love at first sight.

He remembered seeing Deirdre’s blue eyes from the audience as she performed onstage. He knew he had to ask her out, that he wanted to be her boyfriend. After she finally said yes to a date, it wasn’t long before she said yes to marriage and yes to a family. They welcomed son Zach first, and Sean a few years later.

And then James Boylan told his wife something that he’d been struggling with for his entire life—deep inside, he was really a woman. He could no longer tolerate life in hiding. After six years of being a father, James needed to live as Jennifer.

So how does a woman teach her son about being a man? Would the boys be teased, ostracized or ashamed? Would they feel as though they lost a parent?

“What kind of men would my children become,” says Boylan, “… having been raised by a father who became a woman?”

As it turns out, Boylan shouldn’t have worried. Her eldest became an activist and works for justice. Her youngest is a fine musician. Their lives weren’t much different from that of their friends, and everyone generally “forgot that there was anything extraordinary about our family.”

Today, Boylan is still married to her wife of a quarter-century. It’s as “nontraditional” a union as you can imagine, but then again, “traditional” families are no longer the norm anyhow. And besides, says Deirdre, “No matter what else you say about my husband, she’s an amazing woman.”

And though parenting memoirs replicate like rabbits these days, Stuck in the Middle with You is a pretty amazing book.

With her slightly-askew humor and a grateful sense of awe for her family’s relative ease in her transition, author Jennifer Finney Boylan writes from the heart on the subjects of being father and mother, son and daughter. Those four roles were obviously played out by the same person, but it’s interesting to note how Boylan sees herself differently (and similarly) in each of them, pre- and post-transition. I also enjoyed her observations on connections between past and present, which nicely accompany interviews with friends and colleagues about family, children, and being a child.

Readers looking for scandal won’t find it here, but if you want something that’ll bring you to the brink of tears again and again, this is your book. Wanting Stuck in the Middle with You should be apparent.

Book Reviews: NOS4A2, Serving Victoria

Terri Schlichenmeyer, The Bookworm Sez — Mon, 06 May 2013 23:15:00 GMT

NOS4A2: A Novel by Joe Hill

William Morrow, $28.99, 692 pages

The Christmas tree is long gone.

It shed its last needle on the curb more than four months ago, looking sad without baubles on branches or gifts around its trunk. It’s probably mulch now, and that’s okay: the baubles are in a box in the garage, the gifts half-used or half-forgotten already, and you’re thinking summertime, not Yuletide.

But what if it was Christmas every day? In Christmasland it is, and in the new novel NOS4A2 by Joe Hill, the holiday’s a scream.

For her eighth birthday, Victoria McQueen got exactly what she wanted: a Raleigh Tuff Burner mountain bike. For a kid whose parents fought a lot, the bike meant freedom and escape that summer, and a different kind of adventure—accidentally, Victoria found a bridge didn’t really exist, that followed her whenever she went across it and took her where she needed to be, when she needed to be there. But since the bridge wasn’t real, Vic figured her memories of it weren’t, either. It was like a dream—touchable, but not quite.

Charles Talent Manx loved children. He loved them so much that he tried to protect them from their parents because Manx knew that tattooed women and preoccupied fathers meant trouble. So he enticed children into his 1938 Rolls Royce Wraith, promising that they’d live with him at Christmasland, where there were gifts every morning and candy every night. No child could resist Christmasland.

And no child came out of it the same.

Vic McQueen knew this because she once escaped Christmasland by a hair. She was just 17 then, had learned about Manx and found something that disturbed her deeply. Her visit to Christmasland was a big mistake, yet it ultimately led to good things in her life—a man she loved and a son she loved even more.

But because she’d escaped (and her magic was a threat), Manx wanted to kill Vic. He would do anything to get her. He’d even take her son. And so Victoria McQueen went back to the bridge that didn’t exist.

She pointed her motorcycle toward the other side and hit the gas…

Well, then. Let me just start by saying that you’re in for something good when you jump out of your skin on page 5 and you’ve got 688 pages left to read.

The funny thing is that NOS4A2 is a novel that’s basically about good and evil, but it’s not the characters that make it so. Yes, author Joe Hill created a vile creature that’ll make you wince and a heroine who’s reluctantly heroic, but what really makes this book unsettling is that we never know where Hill hides the horror. We’re prepared for blood-and-guts, not for things dangerously innocent.

Add a few inside-jokes for readers, an ending that goes past the last page (keep reading!), and can’t-be-coincidental nods to both Hill’s parents and you’ve got an absolutely squirmy novel that’s better than anything Santa ever brought you. If that sounds like your kinda book, then NOS4A2 is a ho-ho-whole lotta creepiness.

Serving Victoria by Kate Hubbard

Harper, $29.99, 432 pages

Happily ever after.

That’s how things go at the end of a fairy tale. The handsome prince weds the beautiful princess, dragons are slain, wicked witches become dust, peasants rejoice, and they all live… well, you know what comes next.

But maybe you’re wrong. Maybe scandal comes next, or war, disease, death. Only the servants know for sure, and in the new book Serving Victoria by Kate Hubbard, they were quite willing to tell.

When Alexandrina Victoria became Queen of England in 1837, she inherited a court filled with impropriety, which scandalized the young woman. Though she ultimately retained some of her uncle’s court, she needed to appoint her own ladies-in-waiting, maids-of-honour, nursery attendants, physicians and other personal staff. Members of her court were required to have a sense of duty, discretion and high morals. Most of them would come from British aristocracy.

While writing a children’s book on the Queen, Kate Hubbard came across collections of letters and diaries written by various members of Victoria ’s entourage —penned notes that detailed life inside the Monarchy, including daily drudgery and isolation. Hubbard also found gossip that gives modern Anglophiles an intimate peek at the Queen, her husband, uncles and other members of the Royal Family.

Working for the Queen seems like it would be an honor but it was, in truth, dull and dreary: evenings, for instance, consisted of stiff dinner conversation followed by two hours of small talk. The Queen was said to be somewhat immature and loud, often “showing her gums.” More than one blue-blooded Palace employee thought that Victoria and Albert were the 19th century equivalents of trailer trash.

Still, despite mind-numbing duties, Palace life wasn’t horrid.

Queen Victoria never became friends with her female attendants, but she became “close” to some of them and was a generous gift-giver. Though the Queen notoriously kept drawing rooms and bedrooms at 40 degrees F or less, court members were well-fed and safely sheltered. They also got decent (for the time) salaries.

Yes, there were scandals within the monarchy. There were births and deaths (it was said that the queen was never happier than when planning a funeral). There were romances, public and imagined. And there were fights, inside both the British Empire and the Palace walls.

So you’re hooked on a show about a certain Abbey? You’re a rabid Anglophile, long live the Queen? Then I’m sure you’re already itching for Serving Victoria.

And for good reason: the Victoria Age comes alive with author Kate Hubbard’s findings, taking us behind brocaded curtains and inside bedchambers to learn delicious tidbits about a woman who’s been dead more than a century, but still remains fascinating. I thoroughly enjoyed how Hubbard lays down a cheeky, gossipy tone; she’s chatty, but without offending the sensibilities of historians, who will likewise relish this semi-biographical narrative.

Monarch watchers will also like this book, as will British subjects, or anyone who’s interested in or wishes they’d experienced late-Victorian or early-Edwardian life. If that’s you, then Serving Victoria is a book you’ll devour, quite happily.

Book Reviews: 'Decadence,' 'Gypsy Boy on the Run'

Terri Schlichenmeyer, The Bookworm Sez — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 17:50:00 GMT

Decadence by Eric Jerome Dickey
Dutton, $25.95, 368 pages

You’ll try anything once.

You’re daring when it comes to a new restaurant, new clubs, new fashion, pretty much anything. Something different for your plate? Bring it on. An activity you’ve never done before? You head the line. New technology? They call you First-Adopter.

Being open to new adventures keeps life fresh and exciting. And, as you’ll see in the new novel Decadence by Eric Jerome Dickey, embracing new experiences can also fulfill fantasies.

Nia Simone Bijou was feeling restless.

It had been six weeks since she last saw her lover, Prada, and though their weekend together left her sated, it wasn’t for long. She had hoped that her friendship with the soldier, Bret, would turn into a repeat of their one-night stand, but friendship was all he seemed interested in. And so, filled with desire, Nia Simone applied for membership to Decadence, a very exclusive and private swinger’s club four hours away from her Smyrna townhouse.

Decadence fees were astonishing, the medical process was thorough and the interview was long and deeply personal, but Nia Simone had nothing to hide. She was used to being naked in front of others and she wasn’t afraid to describe her fantasies. She wanted new experiences, club rules were simple, and very little was off-limits.

On her first visit, she turned from Watcher to Doer. Decadence was a lover’s playground, and she wished she could bring Prada with her, though she knew he’d never share her. And since monogamy was boring, sharing was what Nia Simone really desired.

But while Decadence was everything she needed it to be, it wasn’t as anonymous as she’d hoped.

Years before, when Nia Simone was in college, her heart was broken by her first love, a man who cheated on her with her pupil. It was still a fist to her gut when she thought about him—so seeing him in the club, watching him please that woman, brought white-hot anger to Nia Simone, and a need for revenge.

Looking for a different Shade of Gray? You might find it here, so bring your oven mitts.

Yes, indeed, Decadence is hot with a capital “H.” It fairly blisters with explicitness—but it’s also relentless. Author Eric Jerome Dickey starts the action literally on the fourth word of this novel and he barely lets up until the end of the book. Alas, that relentlessness sometimes made me lose interest, which is when I started noticing a handful of words that are overused to the point of silliness, and a main character that speaks in tedious, faux-poetic metaphors.

To the good, though, there’s a thin plot in this book—which is better than some I’ve read in Dickey’s erotica collection. But really, let’s be honest—the plot isn’t why you’d want this book in the first place, right?

In case you didn’t catch on, this book is for adults only and shouldn’t even be kept in the same room with kids. If you’ve got that covered, then go ahead and give Decadence a try.

Gypsy Boy on the Run by Mikey Walsh

2013, Thomas Dunne, $24.99 U.S., 306 pages

Work stinks.

Home isn’t much better. Deadlines, dirty dishes, screaming boss, loud neighbors, nasty clients, empty bank account, any wonder why you’re so crabby?

No help, no raise, no sympathy, what you really need is to get away. And so did author Mikey Walsh but, as you’ll see in his new memoir Gypsy Boy on the Run, he escaped certain death.

Growing up in Europe’s Romany culture in the 1980s was wonderfully idyllic for Mikey Walsh—for a while.

As a young boy, Walsh played with his sister, danced to his mother’s favorite music, made mischief with cousins, and loved to dress up. But since Walsh was the youngest in a line of Gypsy fighters, his father started “training” him early to use his fists. That meant daily beatings, sometimes more, until Walsh was a teen.

By then, he realized he was gay and he knew his father would kill him if he found out. So, with the help of Caleb, a man he’d fallen in love with, 15-year-old Walsh escaped in the middle of the night.

But his father wasn’t going to let him go easily.

Within days, a “five grand” bounty had been put on Walsh’s head, and Caleb was being stalked. Terrified, they moved Walsh from place to place until he finally found safety in a town where he hoped his father wouldn’t look. Walsh found a job, but he lost Caleb to the pressure of constant threats.

With the familial situation eased a bit, Walsh seized opportunity to change things he didn’t like about himself. Though proud of his Gypsy heritage, his way of speaking became more “Gorgia.” He made friends and learned to embrace his sexuality. He was confident enough to move even farther away from his family’s influence, to find a good job and a safe apartment. He’d stopped living with paralyzing fear, he learned to read, and he enrolled in acting classes.

He cautiously began to forgive his father.

At the end of last years’ Gypsy Boy—which I absolutely loved—author Mikey Walsh teased his readers by letting it slip that there was much more to his story. He didn’t elaborate, and I wondered if he could deliver on that delicious tantalization.

I shouldn’t have doubted.

Beginning with a brief recap that also serves as a summary for those who missed the first book, Walsh wastes little time before pulling readers into a terror-filled account of the months in which he was always just a half-step ahead of his father’s fists—and yet (this amazed me), he manages to keep a sense of humor about what happened. He presents his story with no poor-me, no sympathy-begging, and a voice that’s calm and matter-of-fact. The lack of whining is oh-so-refreshing in a book like this.

Yes, this memoir contains some repetition, but that minor annoyance is overpowered by a Part Two tale that’s every bit as stellar as its predecessor. If, therefore, you’re searching for something for vacation, weekending, or just because, Gypsy Boy on the Run is the best escape.

Book Reviews: 'Rest in Pieces,' 'Who Was Dracula?'

Terri Schlichenmeyer, The Bookworm Sez — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 17:49:00 GMT

Rest in Pieces: The Curious Fates of Famous Corpses by Bess Lovejoy
2013, Simon & Schuster, $22.00, 329 pages

You walked into a room the other day, and completely forgot why.

These lapses in memory just kill you. If you couldn’t remember what you needed, you were dead in the water. But ideas don’t expire, which is a good thing, because it took awhile to recall what you wanted.

Seriously, sometimes you’d forget your head if it wasn’t attached, and that’s a problem, but as you’ll see in the new book Rest in Pieces by Bess Lovejoy, there are a lot worse things you could lose.

It’s a fact: everybody dies at one time or another, but “some of the most notable lives in history have had surprising postscripts.” The bodies to which those lives were attached had more adventure in death than they perhaps had in life: they’ve been “bought and sold, studied, collected, stolen and dissected… “

Take, for instance, the guy who inspired the legend of Santa Claus. Yes, Saint Nicholas was a real person with a real body that’s been fought over since Nick died 1,600 years ago. He began his end in Turkey and now lies in Bari, Italy.

Or Venice. Maybe both.

Deceased Swedish scientist Emanuel Swedenborg lost his head to someone who wanted to study bumps on his noggin. One of Joseph Haydn’s friends took Haydn’s head as a memento, while Beethoven’s doctor stole bones from the composer’s inner ear. Einstein got to keep his head, but his brain went on an extended roadtrip from New Jersey to the Midwest and back.

Even ashes make splashes: Hunter S. Thompson’s cremains went up with a pop, while Timothy Leary’s went out of this world, along with Gene Rodenberry’s. Joan of Arc’s ashes were probably just thrown in the Seine.

Mary Shelley kept her husband’s heart. Alistair Cooke’s cancerous bones were illegally used for organ-donation. Elvis’ body may have been the target of grave robbers (or it may’ve been a publicity stunt). Edgar Allen Poe’s death and his gravesite both hold mystery. Lee Harvey Oswald’s body is in the right grave, but authorities are “not so sure about the head…” And Napoleon Bonaparte wasn’t as short as history claimed, but the same can’t be said for his, um, appendage.

Informative, lively and rather macabre in a fun way, Rest in Pieces is one of those books that makes you call your friends on the phone, just so you can say, “Hey, listen to this!” You won’t be able to help yourself. You’ll have to share.

That’s because author Bess Lovejoy has filled this volume with little-known information on the bodies of the well-known, and what happened to them. Some of the stories are a little squirmy, yes, but it’s hard not to be fascinated by what you’ll read, all of which makes for an unusual history book that will also appeal to lovers of the odd.

If you’re in the mood for something interesting and loaded with quirk, I really think this is a book you should dig up. For you, missing Rest in Pieces would be a grave mistake.

Who Was Dracula? Bram Stoker’s Trail of Blood by Jim Steinmeyer

2013, Tarcher, $26.95, 336 pages

It’s only a movie.

That’s what you kept trying to remind yourself the first time you saw a classic vampire movie: it’s all special effects. Vampires aren’t real. Transylvania is miles away. It’s only a movie. That helped sooth the creepiness factor, but you still kept your turtleneck sweater handy, fang you very much.

Surely, it took a lot of imagination to invent a blood-chilling character that sleeps in a coffin and bites necks, right? And in the new book Who Was Dracula? by Jim Steinmeyer, you’ll see that imagination only half-Counts.

It would be easy to think that actor Henry Irving was somewhat of a Victorian diva.

From start to finish, Irving created lavishly dramatic spectacles to delight London theatergoers, paying strict attention to detail both onstage and off. Cast and crew called him “The Governor,” and nobody contradicted him, except Bram Stoker.

As Irving ’s “Acting Manager,” Stoker kept tight budgets for all presentations and made happen that which Irving dreamed. Though Irving was technically Stoker’s boss, Stoker was Irving’s equal in attention to detail, and the two became close friends.

It was a shocking surprise to Stoker, then, when literary sycophants gained cheeky access to Irving ’s inner circle. Stoker grew angry: he’d had an idea for a novel, and Irving ’s new friends were less-than-complimentary. It gnawed at him, too, that Oscar Wilde, the son of personal pals, had enjoyed writing success.

Still resolute, Stoker collected information and made notes, tweaking and creating his masterpiece. Vampire lore had been around for centuries by then, and he was careful to craft details for bits of mythology. Dracula was a well-rounded, thrilling monster. So on whom did Stoker base his vampire?

Steinmeyer says that the answer is complicated. Surely, there’s a bit of Irving in the Count. Stoker may have personally known an infamous murderer, and his research gave the vampire a name and loose historical basis. Add a bit of autobiography, influence from a randy American poet and a scandalous playwright, and Stoker had a hit.

Think of all the vampires you’ve known and loved: cartoons, romances, toys, movies, (good and bad), even breakfast cereal. Now consider this: Stoker’s creature appears in a mere 62 pages of the original novel. So how did Dracula seize our imaginations so strongly?

Among other things, author Jim Steinmeyer answers that question. Along the way, he busts myths and gives his readers menace, jealousy and mystery, as well as a wonderful sense of life for Victoria literati.

While I very much liked the foreboding, I sometimes struggled with Steinmeyer’s flights off-topic. They were more information than I wanted, but I do have to admit that those parts are relevant, if not entertaining, and they do help to understand why we’re repelled and fascinated by this culturally changing, bad-accent-using bloodsucker.

If you’re looking for gruesomeness, there’s little of that here. Mostly this book is literature about literature, but if you’re a garlic-fearing vampire fan, it’s clearly a don’t-miss. For you, Who Was Dracula? is a book you’ll want to sink your teeth into.

Spring Book Roundup

Terri Schlichenmeyer, The Bookworm Sez — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 16:52:00 GMT

Spring cleaning is always a good thing.

You find a lot of dirt when you’re scrubbing the corners of your house. You find a better mood when everything’s clean and tidy. And you find things you thought you’d lost and things you never remembered you even had.

Like gift certificates left over from December.

Uh oh.

So, you've got a bookstore gift certificate and you don’t know how to use it. Why not check out these great books.

FICTION

If a good romping romance with a dose of drama sounds good to you today, then look for Close Quarters by Shamara Ray. This is a book about two roommates—she’s engaged and he’s a jerk—and what happens when they realize that they really can’t live without one another.

The Underground Railroad is the setting for The Last Runaway by Tracy Chevalier. When a young Quaker girl moves to Ohio for a new life, she is drawn into helping the effort to spirit former slaves to freedom. And speaking of running away, check out My One Square Inch of Alaska by Sharon Short. It’s the story of a young girl who runs away from a life she’s yearned to escape, packs up her brother and his dog, and heads to a long-time dream way up north.

Fans of quirky mysteries will love The Man Who Turned Both Cheeks: A Novel by Gillian Royes. This sequel to Royes’ first book picks up with Shad Myers, unofficial lawman and bartender for Largo Bay. Shad is in the midst of turmoil that may—or may not—save his little community. You’ll find more turmoil in The Guilty One by Lisa Ballantyne. It’s a novel of suspense, in which a London solicitor takes on a crime that’s possibly been committed by a child. Can he keep his own bad memories from tainting the solving of this case?

One of my favorite authors has a new book out: Live by Night by Dennis Lehane. Set in the Roaring '20s, this is a book about gangsters, Prohibition and one man’s life in the underworld. Coming from Lehane, you know it’ll be good.

If you’re more of a short-story fan, then look for Could You Be With Her Now by Jen Michalski. This book contains two novellas: the first, a sort of mystery-thriller; the second, a story set within a relationship that raises eyebrows.

NON-FICTION

If you love a good step back in time, then look for Successful Farming: Traditional Methods and Techniques for Every Farm by Frank D. Gardner. This thick, thick book takes a good look at all kinds of farming and gardening, the way it was done in Grandpa’s day—which makes this book perfect for reminiscing.

Ever wonder what you’re made of? The Violinist’s Thumb by Sam Kean takes readers on a ride inside. You’ll learn fascinating things about genetics, DNA and how it shapes each individual who ever lived—including you! Pair it up with The End of Men by Hanna Rosin, a book about how the “stronger” sex is slowly being dominated by the world’s women.

How do you keep your family safe? In Dangerous Instincts by Mary Ellen O’Toole, Ph.D., and Alisa Bowman, you’ll learn a few tips straight from an FBI Profiler. This is a book for parents, businesspeople and single folks. It doesn’t just touch upon physical safety, but decision-making and risk-taking, too. In this weird world, isn’t that info you need? Also look for TwentySomething: Why Do Young Adults Seem Stuck? by Robin Marantz Henig and Samantha Henig. Reading this, for parents, is just a different way of keeping your (grown) kids—and your sanity—safe.

So you say you love classic literature. But did you know that some fiction is actually non-fiction? In the book Black Fire by Robert Graysmith, you’ll read about Samuel Clement, the real Mark Twain, and a 150-year-old mystery. And speaking of mysteries, how about a medical one? Look for Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness by Susannah Cahalan, a book about one woman’s scary illness and the doctor-sleuths who diagnosed it.

If a memoir is your thing this spring, look for Memoir of the Sunday Brunch by Julia Pandl, a book about growing up in a family restaurant and the life lessons learned. Or try Diary of a Stage Mother’s Daughter by Melissa Francis, who, you might remember, was one of the kids on Little House on the Prairie all those years ago.

One of the things you want to do this year is to strengthen the relationship you have with your honey-bunny. That means you’ll want to find What Makes Love Last? by John Gottman, Ph.D., and Nan Silver. This is a book filled with hints, science-based tips, quizzes and more. You’ll, um, love it, especially if you team it up with Love 2.0 by Barbara L. Fredrickson, Ph.D., which is a book about our emotions in amour and how being twitterpated changes who we are.

If you love biographies, look for Hello, Gorgeous by William J. Mann. It’s a big, solid, thick book about Barbra Streisand, her life and her career. You loved her on the Oscars. You’ll love this book. Also look for Skirt Steak by Charlotte Druckman. It’s an anthology of memories and brief memoirs written by women chefs. No recipes, but it simmers nonetheless.

Every now and then, you like to read something that sends shivers up your spine, which is a good time to find Restless in Peace by Mariah De La Croix. The author is a mortician. She’s also a psychic. You can well imagine how interesting that can be, right? And when you’re done, read The Metamorphosis: The Apprenticeship of Harry Houdini by Bruce MacNab for a magical afternoon’s reading.

What would you do without your pals? In Friendkeeping by Julie Klam, you’ll read about good friends, better friends and the best friends of all. And for a friend of a different sort, read Swoon: Great Seducers and Why Women Love Them by Betsy Priouleau.

If you’re in the mood for something a little on the spiritual side, then look for Imperfect Spirituality by Polly Campbell. This is a book that teaches you to find and get in touch with the inner you by learning new techniques and methods to increase personal growth and spirituality. Team it up with Nurturing the Soul of Your Family by Renee Peterson Trudeau and Journey to the Woman I’ve Come to Love: Affirmation from Women Who Have Fallen in Love with Themselves, photos by Miki Turner, and won’t you feel better?

So you’ve vowed this year to stay green, and Eco Thrifty by Deborah Niemann is going to help you do that. This is a book that will take you around your home and vehicle to show you how to save the earth while you’re saving money. What’s not to love about that? Team it up with The American Dream by Lawrence R. Samuel, a pop-culture book about the history of Having It All.

If you’ve got a stack of books on your shelf that you haven’t read since high school, Practical Classics by Kevin Smokler will give you a good reason to change that. This book looks at those old classics, how they’re relevant and how you’ll probably enjoy them more now than you ever did back in class. And speaking of class, check out No Hugging in China by Florida’s Felicia Brings. She was a middle-school teacher at a private school in Guandong Province, China. This is her story. You’ll like it.

Loss is never easy and if you faced one last year, then Happily Even After by Carole Brody Fleet may need to be next to your easy-chair. This is a book specifically for widows and widowers, written to help you get beyond grief and back to a new normal—whatever that is. Another book to find is Mom’s List by St. John Greene. It’s a memoir written by his wife, who was dying and wanted to be sure that her family remembered certain life lessons. Buy them—and a box of tissues to go.

Finally, you saw the movie, so you know Lincoln was assassinated. But did you know that there was an attempt on his life years before that? In The Hour of Peril by Daniel Stashower, you’ll read about that almost-crime and the man who saved Lincoln’s life by foiling a plot that most certainly would’ve changed history.

PETS

If you’re a “cat person,” you’ll want to find Another Insane Devotion by Peter Trachtenberg. This is a book about a man’s search for his lost kitty and the cool things he found while looking for her.

You already probably know that American soldiers often rely on dogs while at war. You might even know a former working dog—or you may have one yourself. In Dogs of Courage by Lisa Rogak, you’ll read about more of them: police dogs, therapy pups, service dogs and more.

Your dog or cat has the best life. So have you ever wondered about the lives of farm animals? In the new book The Lucky Ones by Jenny Brown, you’ll read about one woman’s fight for better lives for those critters. Be aware that this book could be very controversial but that’s never stopped any animal lover I know… You also might like Buddy: How a Rooster Made Me a Family Man by Brian McGrory. That’s a story of a man who marries a woman and gets kids and a fowl-mood fowl in the package.

And if your pets run a little big and it’s wild around your house, look for Of Moose and Men by Dr. Jerry Haigh. That’s a book by a Canadian veterinarian who cares for wildlife; in particular, moose. Or would that be “mooses?”

LGBT AUTHORS

If you simply can’t get enough of politics or if you’re fierce about social justice, then look for Irresistible Revolution: Confronting Race, Class and the Assumptions of LGBT Politics by Urvashi Vaid. This book, written by a social justice leader, is heavy and serious, but it’ll make you think and it’ll start a lot of conversation.

So you’re looking for something a little bit different? Then look for The Missing Myth: A New Vision of Same-Sex Love by Gilles Herrada. This book examines homosexuality in the context of psychology, history, mythology, culture, spirituality and meaning through human experience. It’s deep, it’s thought-provoking.

It’s no secret that gay men and lesbians have served in the military since there’s even been a military. In Fighting to Serve by Alexander Nicholson, you’ll read about one man’s discharge under "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell," and how he organized a group to fight DADT.

And here’s something fun: Land of 10,000 Loves: A History of Queer Minnesota by Stewart Van Cleve. This book, filled with pictures and a ton of history is easy-to-read, and just a little scandalous, in a time-gone-by way.

And there you are. You found a gift certificate, and that’s a good thing. If these books don’t sound very appetizing to you, be sure to ask your bookseller for even more ideas. They like to talk about books. Really, they do.

Happy Reading!

Book Reviews: Prairie Silence

Terri Schlichenmeyer, The Bookworm Sez — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 20:21:00 GMT

The faces in the pictures look back at you with hopeful, aching eagerness.

Ah, your high school annual is such a trove of memories. There you are at Senior Skip Day, making goofy faces. There’s a picture of the class Black Sheep, now the president of the local bank; remembrances of prom, homecoming, first kisses and team spirit.

You haven’t seen a lot of those kids since you graduated. Sometimes, you wonder if you really ever knew them. As in the new book Prairie Silence by Melanie Hoffert, you wonder if you ever really knew anything.

It may’ve seemed like the kind of idle conversation that friends have when they’ve known one another for ages, but Melanie Hoffert was dead-serious when she told her friend, Melissa, that they should return together to the prairie.

Hoffert surprised herself with her longing for home. She’d hated growing up on an isolated farm in North Dakota, 10 miles from grocery stores, three miles from playmates, a half-day's drive to a major city. She hated small-town life then but, sitting in a cold office in Minneapolis, she realized how much she missed the farm and, most of all, harvest-time.

So she took a leave of absence from the job she loved. She wanted to be a farmer again. She wanted to touch the past.

But in reconnecting with memories of vast openness and the kind of silence that comes when neighbors are miles apart, Hoffert also rediscovered who she was years ago. She knew at a young age that she was different from other girls—she figured she’d eventually kiss a boy, but she yearned for another kind of love. She dreamed of holding hands with a woman, and she became smitten with her best high school friend, Jessica.

Hoffert knew she couldn’t talk about that to anyone on the prairie. That sort of thing just wasn’t.

Coming home to North Dakota, she remembered that puppy love. She remembered how Jessica led her to Jesus, and the turmoil it created when she was told that homosexuality was a sin. She recalled her family, and marveled at how much had changed.

And she remembered neighbors—the ones who asked if she found a “fella” yet, corn farmers, homesteaders and homemakers, caretakers of the land.

When it comes to this book's title, Prairie Silence couldn’t be more apt.

Author Melanie Hoffert has written a sure love letter to a land and its people, but it’s love spurned and unrequited, as well as love held fast. In between Hoffert’s sweet-yet-angst-driven memories and her journey of self-rediscovery, readers are treated to quiet reverence for a disappearing way of life, for faith that just couldn’t last, and for folks who—to her surprise—never discouraged Hoffert from being who she was.

This is a gorgeous book that evokes quiet country mornings and loud self-examination, and this former farm girl enjoyed it thoroughly. If you once believed that you can’t truly ever go home again, Prairie Silence is a book you’ll be eager to read.

Book Reviews: Mundo Cruel; The Genius of Dogs

Terri Schlichenmeyer, The Bookworm Sez — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 18:44:00 GMT

Mundo Cruel by Luis Negrόn
Seven Stories Press, $13.95

The neighbors sure got an eyeful last week.

Then again, they always do. They don’t miss a thing when it comes to you and, no matter what it is, they always know your business. Guests, groceries, gifts, whatever comes through your door is another topic of interest for them. Just another thing to gossip about. It’s small-town living at its very worst, whether your city is populated by 200 or 2 million.

So now imagine living on an island, landlocked and festering with dirty laundry. In Mundo Cruel by Luis Negrόn, translated by Suzanne Jill Levine, you’ll get a little taste.

Once not too long ago, Santurce, Puerto Rico, was known as Cangrejos, which meant Crabs. For such a small neighborhood, that name might have been fitting, since the buildings, people, the heat, smells, the noise and the gay bars were constantly scrabbling up against one another.

Santurce is where a boy can be raised thinking he’s The Chosen One. He can become a prophet, the future leader of a church, a most beloved son of God … and he can fall from grace in the time it takes to lower his pants in a men’s restroom. He can fall from grace in the eyes of everybody except the pastor, who looks upon the boy with lust.

It’s where beautiful macho men lie to get what they want, and the trick is really (sometimes literally) on the man who gives it to them. It’s where money can be owed for a long time and getting it back can be impossible, which doesn’t stop some people from trying. It’s where a father gradually starts to notice that his youngest son is an awful lot like the boy’s uncle—and since the uncle is gay, there’s sudden, cautious acceptance all around.

People gossip in Santurce, over the fence and about a neighbor’s child who seems rather effeminate. People are murdered there, and crime scenes are somehow humorously made worse by an attempt at subterfuge. People die in Santurce, and they lie about who they really are.

At a mere 90-some pages, Mundo Cruel has got to be one of the skinniest books I’ve read in a long time. It’s probably one of the oddest, too.

Through a series of short stories—many of which leave the reader hanging in the most uncomfortable ways—author Luis Negrόn gives readers a feel for the kind of community where close-knit, kindred residents have lived together long enough to intensely dislike one another. That, of course, can lead to a few funny scenarios and at least one that ends in heartbreak. With these better-told tales, Negrόn does an exceptional job in presenting small-town life with all its snarking and back-handed support.

So can I recommend this book?

Yeah, I think so. The good stories make up fully half the book which means, because of the size of it, there isn’t much to endure of the lesser ones. Indeed, “Mundo Cruel” is a tiny collection of tales, but it could be a decent eyeful.

The Genius of Dogs: How Dogs are Smarter than You Think by Brian Hare and Vanessa Woods
Dutton, $27.95

Your dog has a species identity crisis.

Some days, he’s a copycat and it’s like monkey see, monkey do around your house. Other days, he’s stubborn as a mule, eats like a little piggy, is fearless as a lion and he runs through the house like a herd of elephants.

You’re beginning to wonder what other souls lie inside the body of your canine. Is he part horse, part goat, part cheetah? Or, as you’ll learn in The Genius of Dogs by Brian Hare and Vanessa Woods, is he really part Einstein?

Your dog is the smartest pooch on the planet. He can sit, beg, roll over, and shake. He also has a rudimentary grasp of physics, math, and language.

That’s because dogs are “arguably the most successful mammal on the planet, besides us.” They evolved from wolves to canine lupus familiaris and quickly, firmly glommed onto humans, but researchers have only recently determined how that bedrock-to-bedroom voyage happened.

For canine cognition expert Hare, learning how was a world-wide journey.

As a grad student trying to determine what makes us human, Hare began with chimps and bonobos but soon noticed that his dog was better at many tasks than were our closest evolutionary relatives. His research took him to Russia (with foxes) and to a German lab where he tested dogs to see what happens inside their furry little heads.

Dogs have lousy GPS, he learned. There are exceptions, but most lost pups who find their way home are “lucky.” Pooches have problem-solving skills, but most have a hard time figuring out new methods for old habits.

Conversely, as any astute puppy parent knows, dogs are masters of body language and have the basic skills of a human infant, socially and cognitively. They make decisions based on inference and grasp language in the same way as do babies. Their owner attachment is similar to that of babies to their mothers. Dogs know how to recruit help, communicate needs, and offer comfort.

What we got out of the deal, Hare says, is love and a domesticated animal that may have domesticated us.

I’m a really big science fan and I completely geeked-out on The Genius of Dogs, but there was one curious thing I noticed—authors Brian Hare and Vanessa Woods present some highly fascinating research results, but they don’t acknowledge that dog owners have probably already seen it all.

Still, it’s awfully good to know where that behavior comes from and how inherent doggy-actions can be altered from cute parlor trick into something that enhances your fun with Fido. This book does tend to meander off the dog-path quite a bit, but I thought that off-topic-ness enhanced the puppy parts. Overall, I loved what I learned and I loved knowing that even the most mixed-up mutt can be a master at something.

This book also contains several enjoyable tests that you can do with your pup, so grab a handful of treats and get going. For you, The Genius of Dogs is something to get your paws on.

Book Reviews: The Vatican Diaries; Where You Are

Terri Schlichenmeyer, The Bookworm Sez — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 17:48:00 GMT

The Vatican Diaries by John Thavis
c.2013, Viking, $27.95, 321 pages

You and God had a little talk this morning.

You told Him about your day ahead: what you wished for, the people who needed Him especially today, the ideas you had and troubles you carried. The two of you talk often; in fact, He’s a friend of yours from way back. You’ve even been to His house.

Sometimes, you wonder what He thinks about the events that have happened at His headquarters. You’d love to know more yourself, actually, and when you read The Vatican Diaries by John Thavis, you’ll find out.

In the early 1980s, when he started covering the Vatican for Catholic News Service, John Thavis quickly learned something surprising: Vatican “secrets” aren’t secret at all. As it is in every small town, everybody knows everybody else’s business in the Vatican, gossip and rumors are everywhere, information doesn’t always come directly from the top, and it’s rare that everybody gets along.

When it comes to the Vatican, says Thavis, what the world sees is one thing, and what really goes on inside is “quite another.”

The Vatican itself is a treasure, with a basilica made of masonry that breathes “like a lung” and expands by as much as five inches a day. Some of the buildings are ancient, while others bow to 21st century consumerism, which many residents of Vatican City hate to see happening. Others, however, want progress so much that they’ll destroy priceless artifacts and tombs to get it.

It’s no surprise there’s a ferociously protected hierarchy inside Vatican’s walls, and it starts, in a way, with a puff of smoke that signifies a new leader and (usually) ends with his death and his unfinished business—much of which, to the consternation of supporters, is tabled. That smoke, incidentally, delights Thavis in its incongruity: in 2005, the Vatican informed the media via email that one pope died, and informed the world via smoke that another was chosen.

The Vatican is where reporters often take matters into their own hands to get a good story. It’s a place where celibacy is demanded but sexuality is widely discussed. It’s where residents learn that the “style” of a beloved leader isn’t always carried forth to the new guy on the block. It’s where controversy lies, scandals fester and where the Pope “knows how to put on a show.”

So, is the Pope Catholic?

Indeed he is, and with sensitivity and smarts, author John Thavis shares anecdotes about that man, his predecessors and those who surrounded them.

I was pleased that The Vatican Diaries easily explains what goes on behind papal walls, especially that to which pilgrims usually aren’t privy. Thavis’s stories of desecration, scandal and politics are eye-opening, and you’ll laugh at his tale of being tardy on the tarmac.

This is a lively book that’s steeped in history and personality, and I loved spending time with it. If you’re rather fascinated by that which has been happening in Rome for the past few decades, then The Vatican Diaries is a book you’ll be talking about.

Where You Are by J.H. Trumble
c.2013, Kensington, $15.00 , 336 pages

“You can’t do that!”

The last person who uttered those words in your presence was in for a big awakening. He didn’t know that those four words are like the proverbial bull-and-red-cape for you. They’re a challenge, a dare, an ultimatum to your senses. They are a guaranteed way to make you do exactly what you are told is forbidden.

So you never listen to anybody when it comes to the “C” word—but what if your actions would cost you everything? In the new book Where You Are by J.H. Trumble, a young teacher weighs that and listens to his heart.

Andrew McNelis knew that his star pupil was struggling at home.

Robert Westfall’s father was dying, and though the high school senior was keeping up at school, McNelis could tell that it was difficult for the boy. He wished he could comfort Robert—he was beautiful, with his blond hair and easy confidence—but that kind of contact could get McNelis into a heap of trouble.

McNelis was gay, and he kept that under wraps. Just a few years older than his students, the last thing he needed was for them to know about his private life.

Robert had always had a crush on Mr. McNelis. He liked the way his teacher smiled, and McNelis’ old-fashioned way of talking. Though Robert had a boyfriend, he’d never actually been kissed. He wondered what it would be like to kiss Mr. McNelis.

It started out as a lunchtime friendship. Then McNelis gave Robert his phone number. Robert asked McNelis to chaperone the band dance and check out colleges with him. Teacher and student grew closer, began to share secrets, and the inevitable happened.

There were just four months until graduation. Four months until it wouldn’t matter that Robert and his teacher were falling in love. But in the meantime, there were two big problems—Robert was underage. And Mr. McNelis was flirting with a felony.

My first response when this book crossed my desk was a sneer. The news is filled with adults preying on kids, and I wasn’t interested. But then I became intrigued. With so many possible outcomes and ways to treat a topic like this, exactly how would author J.H. Trumble deal with such a controversial, hot-button issue?

The answer is carefully, but I was still a little uncomfortable. The story here is one of forbidden love that’s only bound by temporary rules, and in a long-lens sort of way, it’s very well-done (albeit, a bit overly long). The problem, however, takes me to the root of why I was a little repelled by this book: the adult main character here is just that. An adult in a leadership role who forgets that his “paramour” is a 17-year-old.

Yes, I know this is a work of fiction, but it’s a squirmy thing to read—not just because of the tension and will-they-get-caught suspense, but because the wrong is wrongly lacking in the story. For that, Where You Are is a book I can’t recommend.

Book Reviews: Ten Years Later; The Trapeze Artist

Terri Schlichenmeyer, The Bookworm Sez — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 14:00:00 GMT

Ten Years Later by Hoda Kotb with Jane Lorenzini
c. 2013, Simon & Schuster $25, 227 pages

Life is like a dinner party. Think about it: you’re accompanied by strangers who don’t remain strangers for long. You’re given choices to sample but, though you’d like to try them all, there’s just so much room on your plate. And you never know which fork to take.

Imagine how your life would be different if this or that hadn’t happened. Then read the new book Ten Years Later by Hoda Kotb with Jane Lorenzini, where you’ll find tales of life-changing situations.

If you could meet the person you were a decade ago, what would you tell yourself? Hoda Kotb says that in looking at her old journals, she remembers some tough times when she wondered if she’d ever be happy again. With the “benefit of hindsight,” she decided to see how others tackle life’s worst situations.

In our darkest hours, how can we know that things get better?

Amy Barnes had a lot to lose before that happened—340 pounds, to be exact. But until she got to that point, Barnes endured domestic abuse and almost lost her life and her kids. Leaving behind her “heavier burdens,” she began to exercise until she found the strength, both mental and physical, to reach for happiness.

When you’re just twentysomething, you never figure you’ll have to battle a rare disease, but when Lindsay Beck was diagnosed with a “sinister” case of tongue cancer, she knew she had to fight. Not only did she do that, but she also fought for a normal life—then and in the future—for herself and for others.

Patrick Weiland was HIV-positive. That fact would’ve been enough for anybody to deal with but, following the murder of his beloved sister, he hit the “lowest low”: his addiction to meth got out of hand. A successful TV producer, Patrick had to re-learn to “the business of living...”

Elite athlete Diane Van Deren had to make a not-so-difficult (but very hard) decision before she seized her passion back. Ron Clifford lost his sister, his niece and a close friend in a horrific tragedy, and almost lost his own life, too. And Roxanne Quimby, who is “hiding in plain sight,” doggedly changed the way we pucker up.

So you’d think that a book about people who triumphed over adversity would make its subjects into Super(wo)man, right? Not so, in Ten Years Later.

Authors Hoda Kotb and Jane Lorenzini present heroism here, but I was heartened to see that each of their six profiles also include human failings, subtle and not. There was one person in here, matter of fact, that I knew I could never be friends with. You might think that to be a negative, but I didn’t; I think it proves that these six people are just like everybody else, and if they can overcome terrible things…

This is an easy book to start, it’s even easier to enjoy, and I think it’s perfect for anyone who needs a boost. If that’s you, today, then Ten Years Later is something you’ll eat up.

The Trapeze Artist by Will Davis
c. 2012, Bloomsbury $16, 313 pages

You’ve often wished things were different. You wanted a sofa, for instance, and regret getting chairs. The college degree you achieved should’ve been something else, and you wish you’d started your career in another city, state or a whole other continent. And how would life be with a bigger family, an alternate family or no family at all?

You’ve often wished things were different, and there you sit. But in the new novel, The Trapeze Artist by Will Davis, a man decides to do something about it.

He hadn’t planned on following the circus. He hadn’t planned it, but after he slept with Vlad, the trapeze artist who seemed so dramatic and needy, what else could he do? He called his mother to tell her he’d be gone for awhile, and he shut off his phone in the middle of her protestations.

He had decided at age six to be gay because his Uncle Dan was gay, and Dan enjoyed life. His parents refused to see it, just as they refused to see him, and he often imagined what it would be like to live like his friend, Edward. Edward’s parents were famous and quite bohemian, while his parents only discussed the weather and their jobs.

Edward, well, he wasn’t like anyone else in the world. Edward was the first gay boy he’d ever known, the first boy he’d ever kissed. He supposed he was in love then, and it hurt to think about that.

Maybe there were a million reasons to follow the circus but Vlad was the reason to stay—and though staying wasn’t always pleasant, he realized he’d never been happier. Officially, the circus’ owner didn’t allow hangers-on, so after awhile, he was given a series of menial jobs to earn his way. Nobody liked him, and why should they? They thought he’d break and leave, but he didn’t.

He didn’t, until it all fell apart and he headed back home to find everything changed—including himself. His mother was gone, Edward was gone. So were his old dreams, ready to be replaced with new ones.

And so, he picked up a hammer…

Without a doubt, The Trapeze Artist is one of the most pensive books I’ve read in a long time. Author Will Davis’ main character is never named; we only know him by pronouns, which adds to the feeling of despair on each page. It’s as if the man is so bland and invisible that he’s not worth naming.

For the longest time, I enjoyed that facet of Davis’ story. It intrigued me, but as the novel proceeded and this character was piled with more and more grief, I found myself growing morose along with the story. This is a beautifully told tale and no, I didn’t exactly want to throw it across the room, but oh, is it sad.

Overall, I think that this book is a serious antidote to extreme joy, but it’s still worth a look-see. If you’re in That Kind of Mood, The Trapeze Artist is very, very… different.

Book Reviews: Dr. Ruth’s Guide for the Alzheimer’s Caregiver; The One I Left Behind

Terri Schlichenmeyer, The Bookworm Sez — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 14:00:00 GMT

Dr. Ruth’s Guide for the Alzheimer’s Caregiver by Dr. Ruth K. Westheimer with Pierre A. Lehu
c. 2012, Quill Driver Books $16.95, 188 pages

Your mother scared the daylights out of you last week. She said she was going for a quick walk but when she didn’t return three hours later, you went looking for her. You were frantic, she was confused, you were embarrassed. She has early-stage Alzheimer’s and you’re trying to cope but things are getting worse for her. Things are getting worse for you.

You never thought you’d have to be a parent to your parent, but here you are. And in the new book Dr. Ruth’s Guide for the Alzheimer’s Caregiver by Dr. Ruth K. Westheimer with Pierre A. Lehu, here’s some help.

It’s not the job you grew up wanting but you’ve taken the responsibility anyhow. Being a caregiver for someone with Alzheimer’s may be a burden and there may be joy in it—but however you see it, you’re not alone. Dr. Ruth says there are some 15 million people just like you, caring for a parent, partner, spouse or relative. That amounts to over $183 billion of unpaid care each year. And that can be overwhelming.

For starters, the authors say, don’t “draw lines in the sand.” Remain flexible, figure out other ways to do what needs doing and never turn down offers of help; even delegating the tiniest chores will feel like a relief. And don’t even think about doing housework when you’ve got some precious time to yourself.

“Alzheimer’s is a terrible disease, but it mustn’t claim two victims,” say the authors. Ignoring that fact may lead to Caregiver Burnout.

Recognize that your feelings are probably going haywire. You may have crushing guilt, anger or sadness. You might feel lonely, shameful or depressed. Maybe you’re filed with grief. Don’t repress those feelings; instead, manage them by preparing for or deflecting them. Preparing early for other inevitabilities will help, too.

Learn to understand Alzheimer’s and its stages, as well as possible treatments. Teach children and grandchildren to adapt, and learn how to get siblings to pitch in. Find a good lawyer. Know how to deal with combativeness, frustration and when it’s time to seek new accommodations.

Let’s lay this on the table: Dr. Ruth’s Guide for the Alzheimer’s Caregiver includes information on sex. You’d be disappointed if it didn’t, wouldn’t you? The thing is, that’s not the focus in this fine book.

With extreme sensitivity, authors Dr. Ruth Westheimer and Pierre Lehu offer comfort and direction for caregivers who want to avoid being overwhelmed by their situations. This book touches on a lot of aspects on both sides: there’s personal and practical info for caregivers, as well as insight on how the patient might be feeling. I liked the individual stories included here, and the authors’ advice seems sound—even when the advice is to ask a professional.

Overall, this is one of those books you hope you’ll never need, but you’ll be glad you’ve got it if you do. For Boomers, elders, and caregivers now and in the (possible) future, Dr. Ruth’s Guide for the Alzheimer’s Caregiver sheds a lot of light.

The One I Left Behind by Jennifer McMahon
c. 2013, William Morrow $14.99, 423 pages

Once upon a time, your parents diapered your behind. They didn’t mind, though, because it was part of being a parent. They fed you, cleaned up after you, put clothes on your little body, toys in your bedroom and lessons in your head. They made meals, curfews and sacrifices.

Someday, you may need to repay the favor, although it may not be pleasant. In fact, in the new novel The One I Left Behind by Jennifer McMahon, it may come at a bigger price than one might think.

Thirty-nine-year-old Reggie Dufrane never wanted to return to Monique’s Wish. The old stone house was once a labor of love, built by Reggie’s grandfather for his wife, Monique, who died in childbirth. It was supposed to be a gift, but Reggie only saw it as a place to escape forever.

She never wanted to return. But when her Aunt Lorraine phoned, she had no choice.

Twenty-five years ago, Reggie’s mother, Vera, was the final victim of a serial killer that the media dubbed Neptune. Though they never found her body, they found Vera’s right hand, amputated neatly, the calling card of a killer.

But Vera was very much alive. She’d been living in a homeless shelter all those years, and now she was dying of cancer. Lorraine demanded that Reggie bring Vera to Monique’s Wish for her final days, though returning to a life’s worth of bad memories was something Reggie didn’t want to do.

In retrospect, Vera hadn’t been a good parent. Reggie spent more time with her aunt than with her mother because Vera loved to drink. Lorraine resented that, and she seemed to resent Reggie, too. Because she felt unloved, and because of a childhood injury, Reggie grew up self-conscious, self-destructive and unable to resist peer pressure from a reckless supposed-best friend. It had taken a long time to overcome that. She didn’t want to return to it.

But the fact of the matter was that her mother was alive, and dying. The other fact was that Neptune was never caught and vulnerable Vera was still in danger. Then again, so was Reggie…

I really have to stop reading books like this before bedtime. I was OK until I got about a quarter way through it. But then author Jennifer McMahon made me jump and, well, helloooo nightmares.

Though there are some rough spots in editing and a little bit of initial back-and-forth confusion in timeline, The One I Left Behind is a pretty fine thriller. The characters are a creepy bunch, even when you may think they’re not supposed to be. There are lots of distractions here to keep you guessing, and plenty of dead ends that should easily foil early-solvers. In fact, I didn’t know where McMahon was going until almost the end of this book, which was mighty satisfying.

So if you need to scare up a few scares, this book should be your next read need. For lovers of a high creep level, The One I Left Behind won’t be left behind anywhere.