This guy isn’t the Messiah of anything

I just finished Kid Rock’s new release, Rock N Roll Jesus, and I have to say it was less than revelational.  The air of corniness aside, this album felt as though it were a frankensteinian collection all the rock standards that the kid grew up listening to on the radio.  One song in particular kept making me think of “werewolf drinking a pina colada at Trader Vic’s, and his hair was perfect!”  Aside from this, at times the songs feel forced, as though the artist was trying to present something more mature, more timeless, but failed in the attempt.   As a whole, the album was listenable, but definitely nothing to preach about.

Slowhand rocks!

II have read several celebrity-musicians’ biographies over the past several years. Most of them seem a bit egocentric or esoteric & unapproachable – fascinating info, but difficult for the reader to relate to the subject/writer. Clapton: The Autobiography was different for me. Eric Clapton has been on the music scene for decades, and has done a lot in his life. But in this book Mr. Clapton leaves his ego at the door. One of his most engaging qualities is his utter and total love of music, and his wonder at being a part of it. He tells his tale in a very down-to-earth manner which is very appealing. From drug use to affairs to illegitimate children, Clapton is candid, and not necessarily proud of the things he’s done. Especially moving are accounts of the loss of his young son, Conor, and his ongoing battles with addictions. Clapton has been sober for 20 years now, and in 1998 founded the Crossroads Centre, a rehabilitation facility for drug and alcohol abuse on the island of Antigua. The story ends happily, as Clapton meets and eventually marries Melia McEnery in 2002, with whom he has three daughters. By the end of the book I had a very real sense of the guitarist finally being at peace with himself and his life, a very satisfying place to be.

Garden Spells

I just finished listening to Sarah Addison Allen’s Garden Spells, with Susan Ericksen reading/narrating for Brilliance Audio.  The Library hasn’t received the physical audiobooks yet, but I was able to download the audiobook from the EVPL Digital Library.  One of the advantages of the electronic format is receiving a title and making it available to our customers immediately after ordering it. 

Garden Spells reminded me of the literary gems I used to find and discuss with staff and customers many years ago when I was a branch manager and read more literary fiction.  This book is charming and lyrical.  It’s full of magic, and family, and relationships.  Each of the Waverleys has a ‘gift,’ and when Sydney and her daughter Bay return to small-town Bascom, North Carolina, after running from an abusive relationship, we learn more about those gifts and love with them.  Garden Spells drew me in and captivated me.   I’d find myself driving around the block or sitting at my destination listening to just a little more before turning off the car’s MP3 player.

Year of the Dog (2007)

I knew I had to write a review on this quirky movie starring Molly Shannon, but I kept asking myself – “what do I say?”  I’ll begin by saying, I really liked it. Now, I’d like to point out that if you’re looking for a Comedy (as this movie is labeled), you’re going to get more than that. It’s not that there aren’t any laughs, because there are many. But, there are an equal number of sad and melancholy scenes. Shannon shines in every aspect as she portrays Peggy, a 40-something single office secretary whose life takes unexpected turns when she loses her beloved Beagle, Pencil. Be prepared for anything and take the ride with a great group of supporting actors – Laura Dern, Regina King, John C. Reilly, and Thomas McCarthy. If you are a friend of four-legged creatures, and especially if you have ever loved a dog, this film will give you plenty to think about and some chuckles as well.

A Mystery and a Road Trip

I think I get around to writing something about maybe one in five books I read.  And I only finish reading about one in five books I want to read! 

Anyway, a couple of good books I finished this past week: Breakfast With Buddha by Rolland Merullo.  I particularly enjoyed this book because I’ve been meditating regularly with other folks in a local Buddhist Sangha (community) for about 10 years now, and it’s always fun to find a good fiction book that does a decent job of sharing some of that perspective.  It’s sort of like a fictionalized dharma (teachings) talk.  This book is based on an actual road trip the author made from Bronxville, New York, to Dickinson, North Dakota, in the summer of 2006.  In Breakfast With Buddha, Otto makes such a trip with Volya Rinpoche, and the fictional Rinpoche’s ideas are from the author’s “thirty years of reading across the religious, philosophical, and psychological spectrum and meditation retreats at Catholic, Protestant, Buddhist, and nondenominational retreat centers and monasteries.” 

Dead Heat by Dick Francis and his son Felix Francis.  I first started to read Dick Francis because he was one of my sweetie’s favorite authors.  He’s become one of mine, also.  I love the complexity and humanness of his characters, and his plotting, shared information about the horse racing world, and use of the language add much also.  This is his second book since his long-time co-author, his wife, died.  Having a co-author seems to help tighten, and make flow better, the writing and plot, and I’m glad he has his son with him on Dead Heat.  Dead Heat is not his typical racing mystery.  The main character in this book is a chef, not a jockey, although some of the plot and setting is around racetracks and polo matches. 

Book & Movie Double the Fun

Back in August, a neighbor recommended a movie called 84 Charing Cross Road starring Anne Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins. It was wonderful! It’s an older movie, but it is so charming it’s now one of my favorites. If I’ve ever seen a movie for people who love to read, this is it. The story is based around a series of real-life letters written between Helene Hanff in New York City and the staff of Marks & Co. in London, most especially Frank Doel. Helene has unusual taste in books, and only Marks & Co. seems to be able to find nice editions of the books she’s looking for. So, over the years as she writes to order books, and Frank writes back to inform her of what is or isn’t available, a unique friendship is formed. All of this begins shortly after World War II, when England is still on rations, and Helene really wins over the staff of Marks & Co. with the holiday parcels of food with ham, eggs and more that she has sent to the store.

In the credits at the end of the movie, I saw that Helene Hanff had actually published a book by the same name. I wanted to read it right away, but I didn’t get to it until today. 84 Charing Cross Road, the book, is a slim, quick read and every bit as enjoyable as the movie. The edition I read has a nice introduction written by Anne Bancroft, but the entire rest of the book is all letters written by Helene herself, Frank Doel, Frank’s wife Nora and members of the Marks & Co. staff in the years 1949 – 1969. I think that Helene Hanff, who died in 1997, would have been a very interesting person to know. If she was alive today and I had the chance to talk with her, I’d be curious to see what she thinks about Amazon (a wonderful resource or too impersonal?) and if she’s read anything by Bill Bryson (Notes From a Small Island maybe?). Instead, I will be content to read my way through her other books, Under Foot In Show Business, The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street, Apple of My Eye: A Personal Tour of New York and Q’s Legacy.