Review: "Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life," by William Finnegan
Recommended by a friend, I wanted to like this book and found it, fair. Actually, it was a touch better than my opening sentence, but...
Review: "The Greater Journey – Americans in Paris," David McCullough
Another great journey from David McCullough. When I first saw the subtitle “Americans in Paris” I assumed, incorrectly, that the story...
Review: "Always Watching," by Chevy Stevens"
This book opened an interesting question in my pursuit of literary criticism. After 40 pages I was of the initial position that this was...
Review: "M Train," by Patti Smith
A couple years back I read "Just Kids" and it was fascinating. Stories of connection with Robert Mapplethorpe and a host of other...
Review: "Under the Banner of Heaven," by John Krakauer
Krakauer proves once again, what an amazing researcher, compiler, and author he is. His topics, and I have read several of his books,...
Review: "Life Itself a memoir by Roger Ebert"
The most important directive in the title of this book is "memoir". My understanding is that a memoir is not an autobiography but a...
Review: "Open House," by Elizabeth Berg
For several years, perhaps it was about ten ago, I enjoyed Berg's books immensely. Set in typical modern America they focused on normal...
Review: "H is for Hawk," by Helen MacDonald
This book is quite a remarkable personal memoir. Having won several awards and made a number of "Best of 2015" lists I really looked to...
Review: "Blood Meridian: Or the Evening Redness in the West" by Cormac McCarthy
If "the west" of the middle 19th century (1850-1880) and by west I mean Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Southern California and large...
Review: "Terrorist - Gavrilo Princip, the Assassin who Ignited World War I," by Henrik Reh
Once again I've delved into the world of graphic novels in an historical context. The title tells it all and a wonderful history lesson...