08.12.09
American On Purpose
Title: American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot
Author: Craig Ferguson
Publisher: HarperCollins, September 2009
Summary: Craig Ferguson is the hilarious host of TV’s Late Late Show. Craig was born in Glasgow Scotland which he describes as “Detroit on acid” when he was growing up. He certainly managed to party his way through his youth until age 29 when he sobered up. His telling of his misadventures as a bouncer, a modern dancer, a drummer in a few bands all while totally inebriated (and more) is self deprecating, funny and sad. He travels to the United States with his father as a youth and his life is changed forever. He returns years later trying to land an acting job in Hollywood and does so by the skin of his teeth.
Now over 2,000,000 people laugh with him most nights as he entertains and shares his lust for the American way of life. His story is another great tale of the American dream coming true for a person who takes risks, perseveres, and appreciates his good fortune in the end.
Recommended by: Karen, Deputy Town Librarian
07.22.09
Sweeping Up Glass
Title: Sweeping Up Glass
Author: Carolyn Wall
Publisher: Delta, August 2009
Summary: Olivia Harker was a happy child living with her father in rural Kentucky. Her father, Tate, was her whole world and she loved helping him take care of wounded and sick animals. Olivia’s happiness came to an abrupt end after her mother Ida’s release from the state hospital. Ida’s madness was still evident, and with her father’s attentions focused on her mother, Olivia’s hatred toward Ida grew. An accident leaves Olivia alone with her mother and she turns to alcohol and men for comfort.
Now Olivia is a young grandmother raising her grandson Will’m and taking care of Ida whose madness has been building through the years. After hunters start killing her beloved wolves on her land, Olivia sets out to find the people responsible. Instead of answers, Olivia finds more questions about her childhood, her neighbors, and the mystery surrounding the accident that stole her father from her. The closer she gets to the truth, the closer to danger she places herself and Will’m.
Sweeping Up Glass explores the complexity of family relationships, the damage done by hate and deception, and the strength of the human spirit. This is a wonderful story and would make a great book group selection.
Who will like this book? Fans of To Kill a Mockingbird or Fried Green Tomatoes.
Recommended by: Sue, Circulation Coordinator
04.27.09
Crazy for the Storm
Title: Crazy for the Storm: A Memoir of Survival
Author: Norman Ollestad
Publisher: Ecco Press. May 2009
Summary: I did not expect to like this book as much as I did. Granted, I am an extreme adventure reader junkie, but I was not expecting to be fascinated by the reckless yet charismatic parent of the author. The book opens with the 11-year old author “waking up” in a plane that crashed in a blizzard twenty years ago. The chapters alternate between the how the young boy manages to survive the crash and how he got there – in large part due to his father. The writing is average but the stories of his childhood adventures with his daredevil father are not.
In one passage Ollestad describes his father’s ‘madness/passion’ :
“The cranium shelf rising off his forehead bumpy and uneven, the cluster of diamonds in the blue of his eyes fragile cracked windows, and I saw someone younger and full of grand ambitions and I thought about how he had wanted to be a professional basketball player. He looked at me as if into a mirror, studying me, like I was holding something that he admired, even desired.”
I was compelled to sit down for a long afternoon and just finish the tale.
Who will like this book?: If you enjoyed Krakauer’s tales, or are intrigued by the extreme adventures of the likes of Tori Murden McClure [who rowed across the Atlantic Ocean solo (and who is appearing at the Library on Mon. May 18 at 7 pm)] you will enjoy this book.
Recommended by: Karen, Deputy Town Librarian
