The 15 stories in Guilt by Ferdinand von Schirach are loosely based on actual court cases. To say they are unsentimental is an understatement. The narrator in each book is the lawyer for the defense. Each story unfolds in a dispassionate way, going from one fact to another. If that sounds boring, remember that fact [...]
I’ve been reading Karen Armstrong’s books for several years, most notably, her biography titled The Spiral Staircase, and her fascinating A History of God. Recently, I listened to the author read Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life, an unabridged audiobook from Random House. The author reads expertly and it was a joy to listen to [...]
Who was Raoul Wallenberg? Few people recognize his name, which is the whole point of His Name Was Raoul Wallenberg. In 2005, the author Louise Borden wrote a fabulous biography about the creators of Curious George and their escape from Nazi-occupied France. Now seven years later, Borden’s writing is mesmerizing, as she creates outrage over [...]
Are you looking for a method to hold civil conversations? The Little Book of Circle Processes written by Kay Pranis, an independent consultant who conducts circle training across the country, provides a good introduction. Pranis served as the Restorative Justice Planner for the Minnesota Department of Corrections for 9 years. Truly ‘little’, this 76-page small [...]
I have not been an Oprah fan, to any extent. Of course, I was aware of her influence, especially on reading, when her Oprah’s Book Club ‘made’ authors’ reputations, their books bestsellers, and the library hold queues extraordinarily long! I wasn’t able to join in the “Did you see yesterday’s Oprah?” conversations, as I work [...]
On January 15, 1919, the headlines read – “Huge Molasses Tank Explodes in North End; 11 Dead, 50 Hurt.” In Boston, a tank filled with 2,300,000 gallons of molasses had exploded creating waves 50 feet high. That wave swept everything before it. 100 men, women and children were caught in the sticky stream. Buildings, vehicles [...]
I really enjoyed this book! The main character, Solomon Kugel is a worrywart times five. He is Jewish, guilt-ridden and hopeless. He has moved his family to the suburbs for some peace, quiet, and fresh air… but he doesn’t get it. There is contention between he and his wife Bree because he has brought his [...]
In Rick Gavin’s Ranchero, Nick Reid works as a repo man for a rent to own shop in the Mississippi Delta. One day his old Nova breaks down and so his landlady Pearl lets him borrow her dead husband’s mint condition 1969 Ranchero. When Nick tries to repossess a TV from some of the Dubois [...]