Summer Reads: a list

May 27, 2012


–Oksana’s parents traveled in a Romani ensemble until she turned 15 and they moved to the United States.


–focusing on the Chilean coup of 1973 and its aftermath for one woman whose lover is murdered


–wine columnist Jean tries to find out who killed her best friend’s wealthy husband


–this novel, beginning in 1929, follows Laura Lamont from small town Wisconsin to the glitz and glamour of Hollywood


–a complicated mystery as Emily St. John Mandel takes the reader from New York to Florida


–this non-fiction book discusses Marie Curie’s two daughters who went on to make their own marks in the world


–re-imagining famed feminist/activist Margaret Fuller’s life


–who doesn’t like to read about the Victorian era? This is a real-life “Madame Bovary.”


–Downton Abbey, the novel? Perhaps. This novel’s setting is one of London’s big houses in the early twentieth century. It focuses on class differences. It’s based partly on author France Osbournes’ own family railway dynasty.


–memoir about getting through the most competitive Ivy in the country


–a novel about family– dysfunction, bonds, sibling love and rivalry

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Posted by Amy Steele

The Singles: book review

May 23, 2012

The Singles by Meredith Goldstein. Publisher: Plume (May 2012). Women’s fiction. Paperback. 256 pages. 978-0452298057.

Weddings. Love them or not, they happen all the time. I’ve never enjoyed the one day extravagance that’s often a wedding. I’ve been an attendant in a few weddings but I’m not that “always the bridesmaid” woman. Not that there’s anything at all wrong with that. In The Boston Globe Love Letters columnist Meredith Goldstein’s debut novel The Singles, she chooses to focus on a caricatured group of singles connected in various ways (many were classmates at Syracuse University). The Singles reads quite simply and quickly. It lacks depth and purpose but more importantly, in the end, isn’t all that much fun.

It’s centered around a wedding because the bride chooses to dub those not bringing dates to her nuptials the “singles.” So who are these dateless [pathetic?] individuals? There’s Hannah, a New York-based casting agent, who still seems somewhat obsessed with her college-and-beyond boyfriend Tom. She annoyingly casts everyone she runs into and gets others involved in her little casting exercises as well. It gets tiresome rather quickly. Vicki lives in upstate New York and designs supermarket interiors requiring her to travel a lot. She carries a sun lamp and reads V.C. Andrews novels to keep up her spirits. I think the reader’s to believe that she’s given up on everything. At 29. Rob flunked out of Syracuse and moved to Texas. Phil attends the wedding at the insistence of his overbearing mother, who’s not feeling well enough to attend her best friend’s daughter’s celebration. Then there’s Joe, the amiable uncle of the bride. They all have enviable careers—the casting director, interior design, a lawyer, head of security for the Baltimore Orioles etc. As the wedding progresses, each singles story unfolds and meshes with others. Some of Goldstein’s references are strange and some– Sex and the City episodes, “the book written by the kid with autism with the dog on the cover”– recognizably amusing.

Advising those in and out of love being a central focus of her work at The Boston Globe, you’d expect Goldstein to have heard/ read quite a few fascinating scenarios. Therein lies the disappointment with these undeveloped, roughly sketched characters. With short chapters, a fluffy plot, and characters you’ll forget as soon as you close the book, The Singles is a certifiable beach read or rainy day-with-pot-of-tea read (if you, like I, dislike a lot of sun).

purchase at Amazon: The Singles: A Novel

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Posted by Amy Steele

Going Down– oral sex stories: book review

May 22, 2012

Going Down: Oral Sex Stories edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel. Publisher: Cleis Press (2012). Fiction/erotica. Paperback. 206 pages. 978-1573447898.

I’m not the blushing type when reading sex scenes like those described in this collection. The focus being on something I enjoy immensely, I appreciated these stories. If you too like oral sex, you’ll Going Down: Oral Sex Stories. If you find oral sex strange or gross or something, read these and your mind will surely open to greater possibilities. A woman keeps track of all the ways she can give her guy oral in “The Thousand and One Ways.” When she hooks up with her neighbor’s husband, a woman discovers that this woman she’s envied isn’t the woman she thought she was at all in “Pretty Dull.”

“Lavender” by Cynthia Hamilton details a meeting of strangers at a hotel room told from the man’s point of view—“Then you tease the snug opening with the point of your tongue again, this time drawing her slick cream upward, parting the soft, pliant lips, then flattering your tongue to deliver a slow lick over that sweet little bundle of nerve endings.” In the fun “Dover to Victoria Station,” author Roxy Rogers describes a coupling in the loo—“That is what I want: his undivided attention, his craving. It’s what all women want from their men, whether they’ll admit it or not.” Another I particularly enjoyed [and made me think of 50 Shades of Grey, which I haven’t read and do not plan to read] describes a woman’s secret adventure in the senses and in passion. Blindfolded, she’s pleased by numerous people she can’t see but can touch, feel, smell, taste and hear. “I try to steady myself, gasping from the first sensations, so close to orgasm, still feeling their tongues, fingers, the warmth of their bodies against mine.” Every woman will find several stories in Going Down that will intrigue her and maybe even make her tingle.

purchase at Amazon: Going Down: Oral Sex Stories

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Posted by Amy Steele

Dirt: book review

May 19, 2012

Dirt by David Vann. Publisher: Harper (May 2012). Literary fiction. Hardcover. 272 pages. 978-0062121035.

In David Vann’s short story collection Legend of a Suicide, the introspection and gloom impressed me. I became an immediate fan. His debut novel Caribou Island gracefully explored many of the same emotions: isolation, regret, settling. The storytelling flows with honesty and grace. His simple writing provides depth, empathy and a glimpse into the thoughts of each character. When I found out Vann wrote a new novel I wanted to immediately read it.

To label Dirt eccentric would be an understatement. It’s Grey Gardens bizarre. It’s 1985. 22-year-old Galen lives with his mother in an unusual world filled with emotional dependency and varying types of abuse. Galen spends his days contemplating New Age philosophy and his taboo attraction to his 17-year-old cousin. His mother makes cucumber sandwiches for tea daily and they visit her mother [and Galen’s grandmother] in a nursing home. Suzie-Q, her daughter, just didn’t want to have her mother interrupt the idyllic existence she’s established with her adult son. Both suffer from varying degree of mental illness—Galen more prone to manic/angry episodes. Galen and Suzie-Q live off a trust fund established by Suzie-Q’s hard-working father but according to her it only allows for subsistence living—no college, no travel, no extravagances.

“It really is that bad. It’s like being no one. You think you’re something now, but it’s only because you can put your memories together. You put them together and you think that makes something. But take away the memories, or even scramble them out of order, and there’s nothing left.”

When Galen and Suzie-Q travel to the family cabin with Aunt Helen and her daughter [the object of Galen’s fantasies] and grandmother, everything crumbles. Helen’s after the money and always has been. Galen gets seduced by his cousin. Suzie-Q can no longer control her son or retain him in the bubble she’s had them living in for years. As Galen and his mother’s fighting escalates beyond reason or control, Vann delves into every psychoanalytical fantasy imaginable.

“It explains everything. It explains the truth about men, the truth that they only care about themselves. And you’re no different.”

While this is a creepy, dark story, Vann writes with a smart, captivating style. Dirt becomes immediately engrossing. I admire Vann’s ability to write about unpleasant/ difficult characters and situations in such a compelling manner. Reflections on the permanence of dirt and explosive power of the sun propel the story to its final tragic denouement. Dirt is disturbing and unnerving but David Vann is a superb storyteller and keeps you flipping pages wondering what atrocities will be uttered and performed.

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purchase at Amazon: Dirt: A Novel

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Posted by Amy Steele

The Lean: book review

May 13, 2012

The Lean by Kathy Freston. Publisher: Weinstein Books (March 2012). Health/nutrition. Hardcover. 352 pages. 978-1602861732.

“Eating consciously, moving your body, and doing inner work puts you on track with that evolutionary impulse to transcend who you were before and be your very best.”

I have a girl crush on Kathy Freston. She’s a smart, beautiful vegan so it’s relatively easy. Her latest book, The Lean, provides a 30-Day plan for anyone to ease into better nutritional and a healthy lifestyle. This is all about a plant-based diet. A vegan diet. There’s nothing scary about it and Freston doesn’t shock anyone into it. By providing an assignment each day, the reader can see how s/he feels after doing whatever Freston suggests. Some are easy—drink eight glasses of water, eat a hearty breakfast, eat an apple each day—and some aren’t that easy for some people—eat a meatless lunch, add flax, swap out milk for non-dairy version, reduce/eliminate sugar.

Freston provides ample suggestions and encouragement throughout The Lean. She includes delicious recipes to make it much simpler to follow this plan. The Lean reveals a plethora of facts about various foods [one apple gives you an average of 4.4 grams of fiber], how food works in our systems and where food comes from. The appendix contains suggestions on what to keep in the pantry to keeping costs down to a list of resources.

I consider myself 90% vegan. An ongoing struggle involves eliminating sugar. I use cane sugar and sometimes agave and sometimes Stevia but it’s not good enough and I know it. But I’m aware of it and working on it. I will also eat small amounts of cheese if I’m out somewhere and it’s on a salad. Freston’s goal is to change our thinking and our relationship toward food. She wants us to feel better and be energetic and healthy by consuming a plant-based diet. It’s such a great book. Everyone needs to read The Lean.

A few interesting bits:

“Apples not only have antimutagenic, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory effects, but they may even enhance our immune systems to help clear out any budding tumors before they get their start.”

“Nuts appear to boost our metabolism, meaning when we eat nuts we burn more of our own fat to compensate.”

“When you consume a lot of meat, your body produces an excess of uric acid. Uric acid is a waste product in the liver’s metabolism of DNA, and when you eat too much meat, your body isn’t able to eliminate it.” [I think this is the source of smelly guys at the gym.]

“Chia seeds are an excellent source of antioxidants, omega-3 fatty acids, calcium, and a good source of protein.”

“A few years ago I discovered a supplement called nopal cactus, which is said to support lower blood sugar and take sugar cravings away.”

purchase at Amazon: The Lean: A Revolutionary (and Simple!) 30-Day Plan for Healthy, Lasting Weight Loss

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Posted by Amy Steele

Falling for Eli: book review

May 11, 2012

Falling for Eli by Nancy Shulins. Publisher: Da Capo (May 2012). Memoir/pets. Paperback. 272 pages. 978-0-7382-1527-3.

“Arduous though it is, dressage has its hooks in me right from the start, with its promise of a seamless, harmonious connection between a quiet, balanced rider and her calm, obedient horse.“

In my youth—from childhood through high school—I rode horses and competed in three-phase events [dressage, eventing and stadium jumping] as well as in horse shows. In short I was an accomplished equestrian. I rode year-round sometimes on two and three-hour-long trail rides. I took lessons, attended clinics, belonged to pony club and 4-H.

Former AP writer Nancy Shulins failed to get pregnant in her late 30s as she’d hoped. The unsuccessful fertility treatments proved heartbreaking especially surrounded by her friends’ and neighbors’ babies and children. She needed to divert her attention from not being able to get pregnant and a friend suggested she visit a barn because she’d liked horses when she was younger. She soon became quite involved in the stable and fell in love with a young horse which she purchased and named Eli.

A novice at horse ownership, she boarded at a fancy barn in Connecticut with an indoor and live-in manager and used a trainer. Her horse Eli, a thoroughbred, taught her quite a bit. Unfortunately an unschooled [or "green"] horse and inexperienced rider aren’t always the best combination. Shulins learned how to ride dressage– a disciplined form of riding which incorporates posture, movements and precision. Sadly, Eli got sick and hurt about five times. I’m not sure why when she took such impeccable care for him. When you care for a horse, you invest as much time and energy as you would in caring for a child. If you do it right and Shulins certainly proves so in Falling for Eli.

Shulins utilizes her journalistic skills to provide plenty of well-researched information on horses and thoroughbreds. It’s an easy-to-read memoir for any animal lover. Plus if you’re lacking in equine knowledge, Shulins simply explains everything. Horse lovers will particularly appreciate it. My mom enjoys reading anything horse related and thought that Shulins provided interesting facts, particularly about thoroughbreds.

purchase at Amazon: Falling for Eli: How I Lost Heart, Then Gained Hope Through the Love of a Singular Horse

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Posted by Amy Steele

BOOK OF THE MONTH: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

May 8, 2012

Not sure why I chose to read this except that I’d seen it on many bestseller lists. In general, I don’t choose YA fiction although I thoroughly enjoyed The Hunger Games series. I read those due to the buzz.

The Fault in Our Stars is SO well-written: it’s lyrical, quotable, smart, funny and moving. Everything you look for in a novel about a young girl with terminal cancer. 16-year-old Hazel meets the charming Augustus in a cancer support group. The two have an honest, sweet first love that maybe only dying cancer patients can have.

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Posted by Amy Steele

The Grievers: book review

May 4, 2012

The Grievers by Mark Schuster. Publisher: The Permanent Press (May 2012). Literary fiction. Hardcover. 176 pages. 978-1-57962-263-3.

“ . . . my life has been marked by short, random bursts of inspiration and activity, followed by extended periods of coasting, disenchantment, boredom, lethargy, and eventually, surrender.”

Fairly quickly into Mark Schuster’s debut novel, The Singular Exploits of Wonder Mom & Party Girl, I became enamored of Schuster’s dark humor, wit and stellar usage of the written word. His second novel, The Grievers, while dealing with completely different subject matter—a suicide—contains the edginess and writing skills that made me both envy and admire this young author. In his first novel, Schuster satirized soccer moms. In The Grievers, he tackles wayward twenty-something’s.

When a former classmate kills himself, a group of friends begins to analyze their own lives and their connection to their downtrodden classmate. Charley Schwartz agrees to arrange a memorial service for a high school classmate who killed himself. Honestly Charley remembers little about Billy except that he was his lab partner. At the moment, Charley’s working a throwaway part-time job—ever wonder who those people are who dress up in weird costumes to hand out fliers?– and thinking about finishing his master’s degree. His wife wants to have a child which adds pressure and a bit of a crimp to his meandering post-grad lifestyle.

Schuster compiles a very solid characterization of that existential twenty-something quest to figure out the who, what, where, why and how for happiness. Charley and his friends behave like children in grown-up bodies. Reflecting on their classmates Billy’s death makes them consider their own accomplishments, goals, mortality. Things they’d rather put little thought into at this time of their lives. A sleek novel with a snappy tempo, The Grievers is sad funny, understandable funny, been-there funny and cringe funny. That’s why it’s such a marvelous read.

purchase at Amazon: The Grievers

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Posted by Amy Steele

Blaming Islam: book review

April 26, 2012

Blaming Islam by John R. Bowen. Publisher: The MIT Press (April, 2012). Non-fiction. cloth. 112 pages. 978-0-262-01758-9.

The title and cover immediately drew me to this little book. Islam remains a mystery to many of us in the Western world. Where does the line blur between Muslim immigrants and Islamic extremism? Is this a multi-cultural issue or an issue of assimilation? Author John R. Bowen attempts to answer some of these questions while also raising new ones. There’s a chapter on Sharia law. He’s well-steeped in the topic. He mainly focuses on Europe and right-wing parties with their swiftness to blame Islam for the wrongs in society. In what I consider to be quite brilliant, France requires its free French courses as part of an “integration contract” and Germany provides free German lessons to those granted work visas. Surely that helps to connect people. Blaming Islam is a brainy and stimulating read.

Some interesting points:

–there’s a “growing conviction among some Germans that Muslim immigrants are inassimilable.”

–Britain’s PM Cameron stated: “we have encouraged different cultures to live separate lives, apart from each other and apart from the mainstream.”

–Hizb ut-Tahrir is “a group that rejects participation in British politics and urges British Muslims to prepare themselves for the coming of the Islamic state, to be created somewhere in the world in the not-too-distant future.”

–“The gap is not between Islam and the West, but between people who are more religious and people who are less religious, whether Muslim or Christian.”

–“Muslims came to see themselves as different because they were Muslims rather than because they were Pakistani or black.”

–review by Amy Steele

purchase at Amazon: Blaming Islam (Boston Review Books)

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Posted by Amy Steele

Dating/ Sex: The Smart Girl’s Guide to the G-spot [book review]

April 23, 2012

The Smart Girl’s Guide to the G-Spot by Violet Blue. Publisher: Cleis Press (2012). Sexuality/ self-help. Paperback. 142 pages. 978-1573447805.

“The clitoris may be our smug little mistress of gratification, pure in orgasmic purpose within her princess seat atop the female pleasure system. But girls who’ve taken their erotic explorations further on into G-spot territory know that the clitoris is but a sweet sentry to the intense pleasure that lies within.”

Don’t know where your G-spot is? Think it’s elusive? It’s not and author Violet Blue wants to help you with this easy to read, informative little book. It’s pillowy and contains different tissues than the clitoris thus varied pleasures. [A friend of mine didn’t even know where her clitoris was until she was 30-something and had already had a child.] Sad. In 2012 to access true pleasure and to know what feels good when with a partner, you have to know your body. The Smart Girl’s Guide to the G-spot contains an illustrated guide to woman’s anatomy and includes erotic stories by Alison Tyler to turn you on for exploration. Blue explains location of the G-spot, finding it, playing with it, the concept of squirting and g-spot orgasms as well as solo and partner play.

–the G-spot is “a bundle of nerves, tiny glands and erectile tissue”
–the G-spot is named for German gynecologist and researcher Dr. Ernest Grafenberg who focused on contraceptive research in the 1920s and 1930s [he was imprisoned during WWII]
–the G-spot’s located in an area often more easily accessible by a lover [angle and pressure]

–review by Amy Steele

purchase at Amazon: The Smart Girl’s Guide to the G-Spot

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Posted by Amy Steele

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