Richard Munson’s splendid biography of Benjamin Franklin provides an insightful view of the statesman’s lesser known accomplishments in science.

Biography, Literature, Nonfiction

Didion and Babitz

Lili Anolik’s Didion and Babitz is a freewheeling and engaging narrative about two iconic literary rivals and their world in 1970s Los Angeles.

Crafts, Hobbies & Home, Nonfiction

Nonfiction Crafts, Hobbies & Home

Garden Wonderland

With its seamless integration of gardening principles with advanced design ideas, Garden Wonderland is the perfect gift for new gardeners—or anyone in need of a little inspiration.

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The Van Goghs: brothers in art

by bookpagedev

Biography

Biography

A biography fit for a king

Review by bookpagedev

by Julie Hale

This summer, Elvis fans are celebrating a very special event: the 50th anniversary of the King’s first recording. In July of 1954, Elvis waxed his debut tune, “That’s Alright,” a rockabilly gem that showcased his special blend of blues, country and swing. Although the song wasn’t a smash hit, it permanently altered the landscape of popular American music and set the singer on a course to superstardom. Just in time for this milestone in music history, Pamela Clarke Keogh, author of the best-selling biographies Audrey Style and Jackie Style, delivers Elvis Presley: The Man. The Life. The Legend. Offering fresh perspectives on the star, Clarke presents a thorough chronology of Elvis’ life, recounting his childhood in Tupelo, Mississippi, his musical evolution, starting with Sun Records in Memphis, his Hollywood career and marriage to Priscilla. Through a colorful, fast-moving examination of his ever-changing personal style, which spanned nearly three decades, Clarke explains the rock icon’s limitless appeal, giving readers a perceptive analysis of his position in popular culture. From “Hillbilly Cat,” to Hollywood hunk, to Vegas-style star, all of his incarnations are covered. The book also takes a special look at Graceland in all its gaudy splendor. Clarke interviewed Elvis insiders and family members for the book, including Priscilla Presley, Jerry Schilling and Larry Geller. She was also granted special access to the Graceland archives, from which she chose the volume’s visuals. Fans of Presley will welcome this special new account of the singer’s life and legacy, which features more than 100 color and black-and-white illustrations and photographs. Long live the King!

This summer, Elvis fans are celebrating a very special event: the 50th anniversary of the King's first recording. In July of 1954, Elvis waxed his debut tune, "That's Alright," a rockabilly gem that showcased his special blend of blues, country and swing. Although the song…

Of sons and godsons

by bookpagedev

Memoir

Memoir

Of sons and godsons

Review by bookpagedev

by Howard Shirley

A Twist of Lemmon: A Tribute to My Father is a collection of memories and stories from the shared lives of Jack Lemmon and his eldest son, writer and actor Chris Lemmon. Not so much a biography as an act of memory, the book is built around Chris’ experiences and emotions as he came to terms with his father’s death from cancer in 2001. The stories Chris tells some Jack’s, some his, most theirs together are poignant and often laugh-out-loud funny. There are encounters with everyone from Mark McGuire to Milton Berle, an interesting mix of old celebrity and new, with Jack as the bridge between the generations. And despite the celebrity nature of the names, these stories link with many a young man’s life in America: dad at work, dad fishing, dad driving (badly) and dad and son playing golf. A Twist of Lemmon is a delightful and thoughtful read that will satisfy both fans of Jack Lemmon and those who simply enjoy a good book.

Douglas Preston’s latest tracks a fabled Italian serial killer

by Bruce Tierney

Family & Relationships, Parenting

Parenting Family & Relationships

Dads across America

Review by bookpagedev

by Howard Shirley

The stories in Tim Russert’s Wisdom of Our Fathers: Lessons and Letters from Daughters and Sons come from people you’ve never heard of, about dads you’ve never known unless they look remarkably like your own. After the publication of his memoir about his father, Big Russ &andamp; Me, NBC commentator Russert began receiving letters from thousands of readers, all sharing memories of their own fathers. He selected and edited these letters into a series of deeply moving stories about fathers and fatherhood, as told by their children. None of these fathers or children is famous, except perhaps in their own towns, but the book may be all the richer for that. Reading it you see how everyday lives touch and teach others in ways both familiar and profound. In this book you will find laughter and tears, folly and wisdom, and rediscover how we learn from each. Woven throughout are Russert’s own experiences with his father and son, serving as a connecting thread that carries the reader through the book. Wisdom of Our Fathers is powerful and touching, tapping right into the heart. This book should not be missed by anyone who is a father or ever had one.

The stories in Tim Russert's Wisdom of Our Fathers: Lessons and Letters from Daughters and Sons come from people you've never heard of, about dads you've never known unless they look remarkably like your own. After the publication of his memoir about his father, Big…

Jungle fervor

by bookpagedev

Biography

Biography

Writers’ night

Review by bookpagedev

by Alison Hood

Writers’ night The Monsters: Mary Shelley and the Curse of Frankenstein opens in June 1816, as a spooky summer storm rages around the Swiss villa of Lord Byron. Inside, five friends sit near a warm fire, writing ghost stories at the behest of their host. From the charged evening that gave birth both to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and the first vampire novel, The Monsters segues into a superlative, riveting history of Shelley’s idiosyncratic parentage (writers William Godwin and proto-feminist Mary Wollstonecraft), her love-starved childhood, and her erratic life with Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley and their gifted contemporaries (including the mad, bad and dangerous to know Lord Byron).

With acute psychological insight, Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler, historians and award-winning authors of the American Family Albums, explicate Mary’s internal and external worlds, effectively connecting the turmoil of her 19th-century life to the poignant themes at the heart of Frankenstein. Though her family and friends experienced misfortune and untimely deaths after she published Frankenstein, The Monsters sensibly suggests that if malady fell upon them, it was because of their monstrous natures ones that veered unwisely toward self-aggrandizement, incest and excess all in a search for unconditional love.

Alison Hood is a writer in San Rafael, California.

Writers' night The Monsters: Mary Shelley and the Curse of Frankenstein opens in June 1816, as a spooky summer storm rages around the Swiss villa of Lord Byron. Inside, five friends sit near a warm fire, writing ghost stories at the behest of their host.…

Not ready for her close-up

by bookpagedev

Essays, Nonfiction

Nonfiction Essays

Lessons learned

Review by bookpagedev

Sports writers traffic in idolatry, or at least they did when Roger Kahn broke into the business some 60 years ago. The great ones, though, see beyond mere statistics and discern the shape of character within these tumbled numbers. Kahn writes here of people who enriched his life through the examples they set as competitors, most notably Jackie Robinson, the first black ballplayer in the major leagues, and his double-play partner, Pee Wee Reese, the first white ballplayer to dare to become Robinson’s friend and defender.

But to write about these heroes, Kahn first had to learn what it meant to write well and with conviction. In learning these lessons he met other heroes, men like Stanley Woodward, his editor and mentor at the New York Tribune, who defied de facto censorship to expose the hatred directed toward Robinson by his peers. Also on the list are Robert Frost, Eugene McCarthy and others.

How can we find meaning from this, we who aren’t privileged to associate with demigods? The answer lies in the last chapter, which Kahn dedicates to his son, Roger Lawrence Kahn, whose turbulent life ended in suicide 19 years ago. Young Roger never left his mark beyond immediate family a family that, in Kahn’s graceful, pared-down prose, feels uncomfortably familiar. Yet everyone that preceded him, and all who have followed, seem to circle him and, in his absence, become important not because of their notoriety but in spite of it.

Dispatches from Africa

by bookpagedev

Business & Finance, Family & Relationships, Self-Help

Self-Help Family & Relationships Business & Finance

Secrets of success for recent grads

Review by Kathleen Smith

by Kathleen Smith

Working as a waitress at T.G.I. Friday's, Ann Patchett couldn't help but wonder why she had landed in such a line of work after six years of higher education. Based on the commencement address she gave at her alma mater, Sarah Lawrence College, What now? follows the renowned novelist through college and beyond, with inspiring and humorous anecdotes of the many stops and starts in her career as an award-winning writer. Patchett's essays prove that the greatest life lessons occur at the oddest of times, such as when you're scrubbing dishes with a graduate degree. This gift book is ideal for the anxious college grad who could use a reminder that there is joy to be found in unplanned moments.

HOLLYWOOD DREAMS
Tanner Stransky has found a way to convert those couch potato hours into tools for the young professional. In Find Your Inner Ugly Betty, the Entertainment Weekly writer gleans lessons from popular TV shows like "Ugly Betty," "The Office" and "Grey's Anatomy" for eager grads who want to climb the career ladder those first few years after college. With style lessons from the fabulous Carrie Bradshaw, employer relationship challenges with the grouchy Lou Grant and goal-setting strategies a la Betty Suarez, Stransky has fashioned a humorous yet valuable set of on-the-job tips. Who would have figured that the folks at Dunder-Mifflin held the secrets for career success?

For the L.A.-bound graduate harboring delusions of tabloid grandeur, The Hollywood Assistants Handbook aims to turn blindly optimistic dreams into diligent reality. With the book's 86 insider rules, a new grad can learn how to live for free, pimp her looks and assemble an army of interns at her disposal. Authors and former Hollywood assistants Hillary Stamm and Peter Nowalk dish out advice on all aspects of the job, from striking up the right conversation with George Clooney to turning Target wear into Barneys fashion. For these successful power players, name-dropping, shameless flirting and suck-up strategizing are tools of the trade and not for the weak of heart or stomach. The balance of humor and reverence for old-fashioned hard work make the guide a valuable asset for those headed for the Hills.

THE PERFECT FIT
What's That Job and How the Hell Do I Get It? doesn't waste time with career anecdotes, offering "the inside scoop on more than 50 cool jobs from people who actually have them." David J. Rosen's research provides the honest, and sometimes hard to swallow, truth about achieving success in some of the most envied jobs as well as offering a peek into the daily lives of those who claim them. Also provided are characteristics for the ideal candidate, salary information and ratings on "the ol' stress-o-meter," so eager job hunters can determine whether they really want to get their foot in the door. Whether one hopes to be an actor, a psychologist, a real estate broker or even a headhunter, this lengthy guide may prove helpful to clear confusion about many glamorized careers. Readers can aim high, aim correctly and avoid the career that just will not fit, because you don't want to pursue headhunting only to find, as Rosen quips, that there are no blow darts involved.

For a slightly more serious and comprehensive career guide, look for Michael Gregory's The Career Chronicles, which offers a candid view of what it's really like to work in fields from engineering to health care. More than 750 professionals confess the best, worst and most surprising parts of their jobs, giving graduates an insider's view before they start their own on-the-job training.

A little something for mom

by Linda M. Castellitto

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How to Stand Up to a Dictator

Maria Ressa

By Sarojini Seupersad

Maria Ressa’s book is a political history of the Philippines and an intimate memoir, but it’s also a warning to democracies everywhere: Authoritarianism is a threat to us all.