Review - Grip: A Memoir of Fierce Attractions by Nina Hamberg

This book is scheduled to be released on July 20, 2011.  You can click here to visit the author's website to read the first chapter.

Book Summary:

(Taken from author's website)

Set in San Francisco in the 1970s, Grip is the true story of how an eighteen-year-old fends off a stalker with just her wits. She goes on to become the toughest female martial artist in her karate school, an early advocate for women’s rights, and a residential counselor for troubled teenage boys.

For her, the best way to make her world safe is to seek out threats and face them head-on. Even in personal relationships, this five-foot fighter is drawn to men with volatile tempers, men like her father. But her strategy of confronting danger doesn’t free her from her past — it creates a wake of greater destruction. Only by marshaling the strength to be vulnerable can she discover intimacy and love.

Charlene's Review:

Nina Hamberg grew up learning that it isn’t safe to trust men. From early memories of her parents explosive arguments to an attack by an armed intruder, Ms. Hamberg set out to prove herself in a male-dominated world. Grip is a story of a girl wandering aimlessly through life amid broken relationships, violent obsessions, and a strong will to survive.

As a survivor of a violent crime, myself, I related to her struggle to overcome what happened to her and learn to trust again. A poignant memoir filled with hope and, finally, a happy ending. I recommend this book, especially, to all those who have been a victim of violence.

Review: The Kitchen Daughter by Jael McHenry

ISBN #: 978-1-4391-9169-9 (dj)

Page Count: 272

Copyright: 2011

Book Summary:

(Taken from inside flaps of dust jacket)

After the unexpected death of her parents, shy and sheltered Ginny Selvaggio, a young woman with Asperger's syndrome, seeks comfort in the kitchen, away from her well-meaning but interfering relatives and her domineering sister, Amanda.  The methodical chopping, slicing, and stirring soothe her anxiety, and the rich aroma of ribollita, painstakingly recreated from her Italian grandmother's handwritten recipe, calms her senses.  But it also draws an unexpected visitor: the ghost of Nonna herself, bearing a cryptic warning in rough English, "Do no let her," before vanishing like steam from a cooling dish.

Faced with grief and uncertainty, Ginny turns to her recipe collection, and in doing so, discovers that she has the power to call forth the ghost of any dead person whose dish she prepares.  It's a gift she is certain she cannot share with her pragmatic sister but that ultimately leads her to an unexpected friendship and the possibility of a new life.

The mystery deepens when Ginny finds a letter hidden behind a loose fireplace brick and a series of strange black and white photographs - evidence of a family secret she can't untangle alone.  As Amanda pushes her to sell the only home she's ever known, Ginny decides that the key to her future lies within this provocative riddle from her parents' past.  But can she cook up a dish that will bring them back long enough to help her solve it?

Mandy's Review:

Cover

I love this cover ... of course, I'm also a foodie so that may have something to do with it.  But if you look at the cover as an art piece, you see the dark strength of the bag against the rich, vibrant redness of the peppers ... all of it set in front of a non-essential disappearing background causing the peppers to really catch the reader's eye ... it is simple, elegant and beautiful.

Plot/Main Characters

Brilliance.  It's not often I can say that about a debut author, but this time it fits.  This book was published for the first time this past April and I can already tell you that it will be a favorite on many people's reading list.

We have a main character who has a disease, but doesn't want to accept her disease.  She, Ginny, doesn't want to be labeled.  She defines her quirkiness as having a personality.  She is strong-willed, opinionated and has a strong desire to be allowed her independence.

Her sister, Amanda, is a heifer ... sorry, but that's the nicest thing I'll say about her.  I understood that she wanted to take care of Ginny, but she wouldn't even listen to what Ginny had to say.  She didn't even consider how Ginny felt about the housing situation.  She just automatically thought that because she was "normal" she knew better.  Oh, how I wanted to slap this lady.

Despite Amanda's overbearing personality, despite being lied to and tricked by Amanda, Ginny proves herself capable of living alone.  She proves that she has what it takes to master her disease when she needs to, when it's important for her to.

Overall

I fell in love with this story.  I love the addition of the family recipes at the beginning of several chapters.  I loved that the main character had Asperger's syndrome.  I loved Ginny's tenacity in dealing with her situation.  I loved the unusual twist of preparing a loved one's handwritten recipe in order to bring about the ghost of the dead.

If Jael McHenry continues her wonderful talent for writing in her next book, I will have a new favorite author to add to my list.  The Kitchen Daughter is a wonderful addition to any family library and I recommend it to all of you.

Review: The Second Fly Caster by Randy Kadish

ASIN #: B004VFPDCU

File Size: 33 KB

Copyright: 2007

Book Summary:

(Taken from Amazon)

Erik, a young boy, is proud that his father, the winner of several state championships, is probably the greatest long distance fly caster on earth. But then a threatening prelude and an unexpected outcome of a casting tournament leave Erik reeling with unanswered questions about what once seemed to be only a sport.

These questions linger and then, years later, deepen when Erik’s idealistic plans and actions are crushed when he experiences combat in the Vietnam War. He struggles, unsuccessfully, with his demons, until a seemingly accidental discovery lead him back to the ways and new meanings of fly casting. Through their prism Erik learns to see himself and the world in a forgiving light.

Mandy's Review:

Cover

The man fly-casting on the cover could be either a depiction of a grown-up Erik or the depiction of Erik's father during Erik's younger years.

Plot

This is a short story layered in meaning.  We begin thinking we know everything there is to know, but then we learn of Erik's father's past and his reason for fly-casting.  This helps us to get a better understanding of the family dynamics between Erik and his parents.

Then, after Erik grows up, goes off to war and returns again, the art of fly-casting becomes Erik's respite from the demons he brought back with him from the war.  As he's mastering this art, the realizations of his father's past come upon Erik bringing with it understanding, forgiveness and peace.

Main Characters

Erik's Father - A veteran who uses alcohol to cope.  He can become mean while under an alcoholic rage (don't most people).  When he finds fly-casting, though, he uses that as his therapy to deal with his PTSD and becomes great at it.

Erik - Idolizes his father and his fly-casting abilities.

Overall

This was a short story that has a big impact.

Review: Five Second Fiction, Volume One by Al Bruno III

Word Count: 3,870 (approximately)

Copyright: 2011

Summary:

(Taken from Smashwords)

What are these two hundred totally twitterable tales? Are they jokes? Are they super-small stories for people on the go? You decide!

Mandy's Review:

This was definitely a quick read.  Each story was 140 characters or less ... easily shareable on Twitter.  Some of them I didn't understand, but the majority were intriguing, funny and witty.  This was certainly a book one could read for frivolity and fun.

Review: Netsuke by Rikki Ducornet

ISBN #: 978-1-56689-253-7 (sc)

Page Count: 127

Copyright: 2011

Book Summary:

(Taken from back cover)

Ruled by his hunger for erotic encounters, a deeply wounded psychoanalyst seduces both patients and strangers with equal heat.  Driver to compartmentalize his life, the doctor attempts to order and contain his lovers as he does his collection of rare netsuke, the precious miniature sculptures gifted to him by his wife.  This riveting exploration of one psychoanalyst's abuse of power unearths the startling introspection present within even the darkest heart.

Mandy's Review:

I won a copy of this book from LibraryThing in their Early Reviewers Giveaway this past April.  I've decided for this review I'm not going to follow my usual format of breaking it down into four sections.  Instead, I'm just going to do a regular review:

Starting off, we are introduced to a psychoanalyst whose name we do not know.  Right away, we are aware of his somewhat disturbing sexual appetite ... whether it is with a random woman while jogging, a patient who's known as 'The Cutter' or a transvestite.

As the story progresses and we encounter deeper recesses of the doctor's mind, it becomes apparent that, perhaps, the doctor is in need of a psychoanalyst himself.  His sexual encounters endanger the relationship he has built with his wife, Akiko.  His obsession with these encounters becomes so much that he acquires a new office space in town to better facilitate these bizarre activities.

Part two of the book introduces us to Akiko, the doctor's wife who is an artist.  I believe she knew all along what the doctor was up to, but chose to turn a blind eye in the hopes that he would be able to stop the acidic relationships on his own.

By the end, it was never said if the doctor and Akiko stayed together or not, but the ending definitely gave you a strong sense of where their relationship was heading.

This book, though short, was definitely different.  It's the type of story that sticks with you in the back of your mind long after you've finished reading it.  If you're looking for a book that is a quick read, but gives you an deep intimate look into the mind of serious sexaholic, then this would be the book for you.