Bobby Wonderful
Old age is not for sissies. Neither is old love, whether you’re in it or watching from the sidelines. ~Bob Morris
Bobby Wonderful may seem like a strange title for a book but to author Bob Morris, the two words make perfect sense because “Bobby” and “Wonderful” are the last words spoken by his parents before they passed away. The irony is that the author by his own admission was not a wonderful son (his brother, Jeff deserved that award). He was the irresponsible fun-loving child, the second of two boys whose job was to lighten the mood and entertain. Jeff, his older brother was the responsible one, the leader driven by duty and purpose who always seemed to make the right decision and be in the right place at the right time (there’s always one in every family). Read more 
Hesitation Wounds
Little girls are resilient creatures, hiding in graveyards, under a white coat, behind the bathroom mirror of a 747. Every so often we dare ourselves to peek out and sometimes we even move forward, into the daylight – where the assassin has the open shot.
In Hesitation Wounds by Amy Koppelman, the reader is introduced to Dr. Susanna Seliger, a 43-year old psychiatrist who specializes in treatment resistant depression – a career that requires minimal emotional involvement with patients who have exhausted traditional therapy methods. Her tools are primarily drugs and electrocompulsive shock therapy, the latter of which often causes memory loss – the irony of which is not lost on the reader as the story unfolds. Read more
Commonwealth
Ann Patchett’s most recent work of fiction, Commonwealth is the story of two families: the Keatings (Fix and Beverly and their two young daughters, Caroline and Franny) and the Cousins (Bert and Teresa and their four young children, Cal, Holly, Jeanette, and Albie) over a 50-year period that spans from the 1960’s to current times. Read more
In Defense of Food
Michael Pollan’s New York Times bestseller In Defense of Food belongs on the modern-day shortlist of most eye-opening nutrition books, along with Forks Over Knives, The Third Plate, and The Omnivore’s Dilemma (also by Michael Pollan). All four books contribute a vast amount of information to the conversation on health and diet, with three out of the four written by unapologetic carnivores. Read more
Never Let Me Go
I keep thinking about this river somewhere, with the water moving really fast. And these two people in the water, trying to hold onto each other, holding on as hard as they can, but in the end it’s just too much. The current’s too strong. They’ve got to let go, drift apart.
Never Let Me Go was written by Kazuo Ishiguro, the prize-winning author of The Remains of the Day. Nominated for several awards (Booker Prize, Arthur C. Clarke Award, and National Book Critics Circle Award), Never Let Me Go is the story of three children – Kathy, Ruth, and Tommy – who were students at a prestigious and very exclusive boarding school in the English countryside called Hailsham. Read more
Brain on Fire
She’s still in there. I can see her. She’s still there. I know it.
Brain On Fire – My Month of Madness – by Susannah Cahalan is an award-winning memoir (2012) about the author’s struggle with illness and her journey back to health. In February of 2009, 24-year old Susannah Cahalan is living in a studio apartment in Hell’s Kitchen in New York City, working as a reporter for The New York Post newspaper and in love with her boyfriend, a man named Stephen. Read more
Whole Grain Vegan Baking
The average adult only eats 15 grams of fiber per day. Women need 25 grams of fiber per day, and men need 38 grams of fiber per day. ~Institute of Medicine, National Institute of Health
Fiber is one of those things that most people under the age of 60 don’t want to talk about because fiber helps move food through the digestive system and youngish people tend to avoid any discussion about indoor plumbing. But, because so much of the food we consume is refined and processed, we need to talk about this issue because most of us are not consuming enough fiber on a daily basis. Read more
Everybody’s Fool
I’m so tired of being everybody’s fool.
Twenty-three years ago, a wonderful book entitled Nobody’s Fool by Richard Russo was published. Set in upstate New York in a small town called North Bath (thinly veiled and thought to be Schuylerville) adjacent to Schuyler Springs (again, thinly veiled and thought to be Saratoga Springs), the story revolved around Donald “Sully” Sullivan – a middle-aged, stubborn and cantankerous man who chose to be faithful only to his nature – independent and undependable – and yet Sully was a good guy. At the end of each day, his destination of choice was a bar stool in the local watering hole where he gave as good as he got. Although Sully was a neglectful husband and father, he had an abundance of charm and wit which endeared him to many, especially readers. Read more
The Good Lord Bird
It weren’t slavery that made me want to be free. It was my heart.
If the cover of The Good Lord Bird did not disclose the author to be James McBride, the reader would think that Mark Twain was the genius behind this novel. Winner of the National Book Award (2013), The Good Lord Bird is the story of the years leading up to the historic raid on Harper’s Ferry in 1859 from the perspective of a young boy named Henry Shackleford, who is known throughout the book as Henrietta when he is mistaken as a girl and decides to play the part to save his hide. Read more
Elie Wiesel, Night, and July 4th
Three years ago, I posted a book review of Elie Wiesel’s Night – the story of his family and how the teenage Wiesel survived the Holocaust during World War II. On this July 4th as we celebrate independence and the passing of 87-year old Wiesel just a few days ago, it seems only fitting that we honor a man who spoke out against violence, racism, and repression, told us why we need to stand up to injustices, and how important it is to listen to those with the courage to speak out. With that in mind, the post of Night – one of Wiesel’s most important works – is reprinted below: Read more
Paddock Post 