165,000,000: Choosing Boys Over Girls and the Repercussions on Society

What is the 165,000,000?  That is what we learn in the new non-fiction book Unnatural Selection: Choosing Boys Over Girls, and the Consequences of a World Full of Men by Mara Hvistendahl.   The number is the number of female fetuses aborted in Asia  due to sex selection.  That's more than the current female population in the US.  Now hold your horses.  This isn't a blog on the word  that begins with "A".  I don't go there.  It's like trying to win an argument about who should be the US president.  But, what I did find interesting in this book is that there is a whole heck of a lot going on out there that needs to be known.  Let me see if I can give the book its due justice. The author, Ms Hvistendahl, is pro choice.  What she is interested in and concerned about is...the future of girls in the world.  What I know:  Because of China's overpopulation, they had instituted a 1 child per family policy, that the Chinese family prefers to have sons, that India is overpopulated, that women in Indian society, because of a lack of dowry paid in full,  have often been killed and that the US upholds Roe V Wade. What I didn't know was the extend to which sex selection abortions occurred and I didn't know the involvement of the Western world in causing this phenomena.  Read more...

A Horse Race Like You've Never Seen

Like horse racing? Well, this is a horse race you have never seen before. The horses are blessed in their local churches before the race. The jockeys ride bareback and can knock each other off their horses. They can use trickery. And a riderless horse can win. If a riderless horse wins, the knocked off jockey can challenge the offender to a fist fight. The Kentucky Derby is a lightweight compared to the bi-annual Palio horse race in Siena, Italy. We had the good fortune of traveling to Italy for a wedding which was held in Siena during the Palio. We had found a great villa on RentVillas.com that was not far from town, was AIR CONDITIONED as well as having internet and satellite TV. The owner really knew how to cater to Americans. It was really an old barn that had been converted into a stand alone villa. Now you may scoff at us wanting these luxuries. Many stayed in more traditional villas with the thick walls and ancient history, but they were constantly hot (it was July after all) and the bathrooms were like shower stalls.  But, we were within walking distance of a grocery store and a great local restaurant (no one spoke English). But, let’s go back to the horse race. Read more...

The Writings of Erik Larson: A Review

I came to love the writing of Erik Larson with his first book, Isaac's Storm.  I'll tell you more about that book in a minute.  Let me tell you first about his style.  His books are works of non-fiction.  What he does is takes two to three story lines, of the same period, and intertwines them.  He has written four books that have all used this technique and all have been best sellers.  Of course, your humble reviewer has read them all.  I've enjoyed all but one. So, let's get back to his first best seller, Isaac's Storm.  I am from Texas.  When I was a kid,  Florida was never a vacation destination but Galveston sure was.  So, every summer our family would stay with my grandmother and drive the short distance from Houston to Galveston.  In 1999 I heard that a new book was coming out about the great Galveston hurricane of 1900. I knew I had to buy it.  What Larson does in this book is intertwines the beginning of the US weather service with the great hurricane itself.  After the civil war and the advent of the telegraph, the US government set up "weathermen" in strategic locations to try and forewarn the coming of bad weather.  One such new weatherman was Isaac Cline, and he was given the position in Galveston.   The only training he got was with the Army Signal Corp.  And they knew nothing about weather forecasting.  Unfortunately for Isacc, this proves devastating.  We learn that Isaac doesn't believe that a big storm will ever hit Galveston because of the where and way it is situated.  We go from one chapter detailing the building of the weather service to the next chapter with Isaac trying to forecast the weather to the tracking of the storm itself. The hurricane is the largest natural disaster in American history.  You'll learn all about this in terrifying detail and of the horrendous aftermath.  Read more...

Review on the 944 page Shantarum: A Novel

This book is like step on the gas then slam on the brakes followed by a step on the gas followed by a step on the breaks.  I was watching the Road to Perdition with Tom Hanks and he's trying to teach his kid how to drive a car so he can be the getaway driver.  The kid steps on the gas them slams on the breaks and continues down the road...steps, slams, steps, slams. The "step" part is all action and shoot'em outs and cruel prison guards and evil "madams" while the "slam" part is all Eat Pray Love pap.   All philosophical and mystical and mumbo jumbo.  That's my opinion and I'm sticking to it.  That is what Shantarum is like.  Let me set the stage.  Now keep in mind this book by David Gregory Roberts is based loosely on his life.   Read more...

My Summer Reading List

I know that many of you don't have enough leisure time to try and find a good book.  So, I thought I'd share with you what I've recently read and what's on my list for the summer.  There are some major books coming in the fall, Grisham, Connelly, Flynn, etc.  All I've already pre-ordered.  I get a weekly email from bookreporter.com that let's me know what's new on the market.  Anyway, if you're interested, here's what I've recently read and what I still have on my list:

Recently read:

Does the Noise in My Head Bother You, Steven Tyler (non-fiction, I think)(read my review on my blog)

In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin, Erik Larson (non-fiction)

Dead Reckoning:  Sookie Stackhouse, Charlaine Harris (Sookie's with Erik!)

The Snowman( newest) and Redbreast (oldest) Harry Hole novel's, Jo Nesbo

The Long Road Home, Ben Shepard (non-fiction, post WWII and dealing with displaced persons and prisoners)

Mildred Pierce, James Cain (classic noir, author of The Postman Always Rings Twice and Double Indemnity)

A Visit from the Goon Squad, Jennifer Egan (see blog for review)

Dreams of Joy, Lisa See (this is a sequel to Shanghai Girls and you do need to read that first.  See is the author of Snowflower and the Secret Fan)

To read:

Cutting for Stone, Abraham Verghese

The Devil's Star (2nd Harry Hole novel), Jo Nesbo

The Madonna's of Leningrad: A Novel, Debra Dean (what can I say, I love WWII books)

Onward, Schultz and Gordon, (non fiction, rebuilding Starbuck's)

Blind the Ponies, Stanley West (no, it's not about blinding ponies)

Shantarum, Gregory Roberts (one of those big, sprawling, covering decades and generations kind of book)

Just Kids, Patti Smith (non-fiction, autobiography of the goddess of punk rock)

Autobiography of Mark Twain Vol. One, Smith, Griffin and Fischer

Parrot and Oliver in America, Peter Carey

Room, Emma Donoghue (book club selection)

The Electric Cool Aid Acid Test, Tom Wolfe (book club selection)

The Cookbook Collector, Allegra Goodman (book club)

Hope you find some of these interesting, engaging and I'm sure some will be boring and not worth the read. 

Book Review:Does the Noise in My Head Bother You?: A Rock 'n' Roll Memoir by Steven Tyler

Reviewer’s Suggestion:  R Rated

When I first mentioned that I was reading this memoir to a friend of mine she said, “Oh you’ve GOT to review that for the community newsletter.” I said I’d have to finish the book first because what I was reading at the time definitely isn’t for everybody’s consumption. I was in my teens during the 60’s and definitely have been to my share of rock concerts throughout the 70’s and 80’s. And I’m a real classic rock and roll kind of girl. So, the autobiographies of some of the “greats” of rock roll are always on my list to read. But I’ve found most of them to be very boring including that of Eric Clapton and Keith Richards. How in the world can autobio’s by these two guys be boring? I don’t know but they were. But Steven Tyler has such an “out there” BIG personality that I figured I’d give it a try. After reading the first two pages, I asked myself, did you understand any of that? And then I understood the title. As Tyler himself says, ”What did you expect, the book to be linear?”

Let me say this about the memoir and why I gave the above warning. Tyler holds back on NOTHING when it comes to his sex life and describes in DETAIL many parts of the female anatomy using a variety of colorful adjectives. Read more...

Book Review: A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan

2011 Pulitzer Prize Winner for Fiction

I normally like to check out award winners, read reviews on them, and if it sounds interesting, then I’ll buy it. This is dangerous because the literati, writers for the New York Times, LA Times etc, definitely have different ideas about what makes up a good/literary read. I went back in time and did some research on past Pulitzer Fiction winners to see which ones I had read and which ones I enjoyed. I just picked 1948 as my starting point and low and behold, the winner was James Michener’s Tales of the South Pacific, which I loved. From that Pulitzer pick to 2011, I have read 16. I enjoyed all 16. The difference between that 1948 pick and that of the 2011 winner is like night and day, sand and water. One is simplistic and the other is dense, sprawling, confusing, annoying and tries to use so many literary techniques, it makes your head spin. It’s not Tales of the South Pacific. This is not a book to take lightly. Once you start, you need to keep with it and here’s why: The structure of the novel is like a crap shoot. Take two, three, four die and put the name of Sasha on some and the name of Bennie on the others. Then roll. Read more...

Jolly Olde London Towne

Twisted Head Part Seven

Well, I haven't posted anything since January on the status of my twisted head.  If you're squeamish, don't read further.  As I said in my previous post, I'm going to the best doctor in the southeast for my malady. His name is Dr.  Matthews Gwynn.  A very nice guy. He's been using botox for this malady for 20 years and teaches other doctors in the state of Georgia how to do the procedure.   Well, he utilizes a different technique than the other neurologist.  He has the IMG machine but the needle is hooked up to the machine with the vial of botox in the syringe.  Look away now kids.  Read more...

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks: A review

My blog has moved to www.satisfyingmycuriosity.com.  If you've enjoyed this blog, please check my new site out for other interesting comments on culture, travel, book reviews, and music.


You go for a routine skin cancer scan at your dermatologist’s. They remove a small piece of skin that looks suspicious and they send it to the lab for testing. You’ve been diagnosed with prostate cancer and the prostate is removed and tested. You’ve had a hysterectomy and all the organs are sent out to be tested. Then what? What happens to those pieces of skin or organs? Thrown into the medical waste bin? Sometimes yes, sometimes NO. In 1999 the RAND Corporation estimated that American labs alone held more than 307 million tissue samples from 178 million people. Didn’t know that, did you? And neither did the family of Henrietta Lacks. Read more...

Paraprosdokians

A paraprosdokian is a figure of speech in which the latter part of a sentence or phrase is surprising or unexpected in a way that causes the reader or listener to re-frame or reinterpret the first part. It is frequently used for humorous or dramatic effect. Read more.... e:

Amos Daragon #1: The Mask Wearer by Bryan Perro

Children’s Book ages 9-12

I’ve never been a big fan of fantasy books or movies. The only one I’m addicted to is The Lord of the Rings, which I’ve read time after time and have seen the movies over and over. I found it amusing that the name of the hero of this book is Daragon and one of the heroes of The Lord of the Rings is Aragorn. Just a coincidence, I’m sure.



Amazon.com had selected Amos Daragon as one of its “BEST OF” for the month of Feb. I ordered it for my goddaughter without reading it and then thought, hmmm, maybe before giving a book to a child, I’d better READ IT FIRST! Duh… The setting reminded me, again, of middle earth in The Lord of The Rings. It is chock full of all kinds of creatures and mythology, Seth, the Egyptian god of darkness and evil, fairies, gorgons (think Medusa), and humanimals (think the Island of Dr. Moreau), sorcerers, druids, gods, knights etc. So, on to the story. Read more:

A Review on the Author Vince Flynn

My blog has moved to www.satisfyingmycuriosity.com.  If you've enjoyed this blog, please check my new site out for other interesting comments on culture, travel, book reviews, and music.

May Vince Flynn rest in peace...

Picture this if you can. Vince Flynn, the wildly popular political thriller writer, has been asked by then President George W. Bush to the White House. They then proceed to the presidential limo to go to some function or other. Once they get comfortably inside, Bush leans across the limo as he points his finger at Flynn and demands,” You tell me right now who your contacts are in the CIA and FBI! I want to know NOW!” Bush was joking around but that shows how good Flynn is with his political thrillers and how on the spot he is with detail, dialog and plot. That's a true story, by the way.  Flynn admits he does have contacts but, of course, refuses to name them.




Vince Flynn is a 44 year old writer fighting dyslexia and is now fighting stage 3 prostate cancer(He died June 2013). He tried to be a Marine but for some medical reasons was unable to join. While working at Kraft Foods, he decided to work on overcoming his dyslexia. He began to read and read and read. He especially loved espionage. As with many first time authors he tried to get his work published but was turned down time after time. He finally decided to self publish and the genre of political thrillers has never been the same. His first novel, Term Limits, quickly shot up the New York Times best seller list. I think the reason for his success is not only his insight into the worlds of the FBI, CIA and counter terrorism but the main character of the majority of his books, the one and only Mitch Rapp. He makes Jack Bauer look like a pussy cat. Speaking of Jack Bauer and 24, Flynn has, for many years, been a consultant for that show.  Read more:

US Aid to Foreign Countries (Not so Boring Considering What's Happening in Egypt)

I've always known that the US has given aid to countries throughout the world.  In  my younger days, I envisioned that this aid went to cure diseases, fight hunger etc.  As I became older and more jaded, I queried of myself, which I often do, where is the money of the US taxpayer going and to what ends are those monies being used? Well, surprise surprise surprise.  It ain't where you thunk.  I've done a great deal of reading lately about the monies we send to Africa.  Now, President Bush (even Bono had to agree with this one) used hundreds of millions of  US dollars, bordering on the billions, to help eradicate malaria and AIDS in Africa. Those dollars have done much good.  So, hurrah for Pres. Bush.  But throughout the entire history of our country, we have used foreign aid to prop up dictators and despots to safeguard our own welfare. Read more... 

How I Got My First Orchid and Now Have 80

 I'm an orchid hobbyist or as my husband would say, a fanatic. I'm not a fanatic.  Ever read The Orchid Thief? Fanatic.  But, how did I become enamored, enthralled with growing orchids?  I blame a friend who graciously gave me a Phalaenopsis (moth) orchid.  They're the ones you see most frequently in grocery stores and nurseries.  The reason is that they are both beautiful and easy to grow.  Unfortunately most people, once the blooms have fallen off,  don't have a clue what to do with it and therefore, dump it.  How sad. I'm not a dumper when it comes to plants.  So, I went to the official site for the American Orchid Society (aos.org) and looked up the care needed to keep a Phalaenopsis alive. Read more...

Keen-wah: And Other Foods That Are Very Good for You

When I was a kid growing up in my little hometown of 800, there was one local grocery store.  And fortunately it was a time when kids could still ride their bikes up and down the streets or walk to the local grocery without fear of being abducted.  At this local grocery store, there was one food that my sister and I loved to go get.  Ice cream? No. Candy? No.  Ok then, how about Big Red (for you yankees that's a local  red colored cola that's great over ice cream and one hell of a hangover cure)?  No.  The lady who owned the store had a big vat of pickled herring.  I can just hear the groans now.  Pickled herring?  Are you nuts?  For some reason or another my sister (not my younger sister, she won't eat fish) and I took a great liking to these little fishes and to this day, I still find them delicious. And on top of that, low these many years later, I find that they're also very good for you.  Now my father, on the other hand, loved canned sardines.  I think he ate a tin of sardines in olive oil everyday of his adult life.  Why this reminiscing about herring and sardines?  (Are you still with me or have you X'd me out?)  Because I saw this list in Real Simple magazine about the 30 best foods to keep you healthy and sardines is on the list.  So, to keep you from having to go out and buy the magazine, here are the top 30 foods you need to eat to keep you healthy: 



almonds, avocadoes, barley, black beans, blueberries, broccoli, bulgur, chard, boneless, skinless chicken breasts, edamame, eggs!, extra virgin olive oil, kale, kidney beans, kiwi, lentils, mushrooms, oatmeal (steel cut or old fashioned), oranges, peanut and almond butters (all natural), pumpkin, quinoa (pronounced keen wah), SARDINES, skim milk, spinach, sweet potatoes, walnuts, whole grain pasta, wild salmon, nonfat Greek yogurt.



Now, with that being said, don't sit down and eat as a meal almonds, avocadoes, peanut and almond butter, sardines and salmon.  Sounds like the ingredients you might find in "the basket" on Chopped...Although very good for you, you would have eaten a meal way beyond any normal calorie allotment for the day.  Mix and match the low cal with the other "good" fat foods...

Stay healthy in 2011 and beyond!

Twisted Head Part Six-Whatever

It's been July since I last wrote about my twisted head.  I suppose that could be a name for a rock band, the twisted heads.  Anyway, there hasn't been much of a change.  The second set of shots where the neurologist used the EMG machine, seemed to work fairly well.  So, I was rather optimistic.  I could hold my head relatively straight and didn't feel such a tug to raise the left shoulder.  So, I went back in Oct. and had another set of shots. This time he did not use the EMG machine, convinced it was one particular muscle group and put one entire vial of Botox into that muscle group and the other vial, he spread around.  Instead of progressing, I was now somewhere between day one and the second set of shots.  Disappointment is an understatement. Read more... 

A Review of Freedom a novel by Jonathan Franzen

I had read so much positive spin about this book before its publication that I decided to buy it. Then Oprah picked it and for me, that was a death knell. Oprah’s books are always about some type of dysfunction be it abuse of any kind, man’s inhumanity to man, all in all depressing. To my dismay, my book club even picked it as a selection. So, I dutifully picked up the book and began to read. Now, the reviews I’ve read have, for the most part, been over the top. It is a multilayered, multifaceted, exquisitely written masterpiece yada yada yada. I’m going to put it this way and use a sort of quote from Uncle Stevie, or in this case Stephen King: Some books you read for the beauty of the written word, some you read for a great story but when you find one that has both, then read with abandon. Freedom has great writing and a great story but unfortunately, not at the same time. Read more... 

And Then the Fight Started

One year, I decided to buy my mother-in-law a cemetery plot as a Christmas gift...


The next year, I didn't buy her a gift.

When she asked me why, I replied,

"Well, you still haven't used the gift I bought you last year!"

And that's how the fight started.....

______________________________



My wife and I were watching Who Wants To Be A Millionaire while we were in bed.

I turned to her and said, 'Do you want to have Sex?'

'No,' she answered. I then said,

'Is that your final answer?'

She didn't even look at me this time, simply saying, 'Yes..'

So I said, "Then I'd like to phone a friend."

And that's when the fight started...



________________________________



I took my wife to a restaurant.

The waiter, for some reason, took my order first.

"I'll have the rump steak, rare, please."

He said, "Aren't you worried about the mad cow?"

"Nah, she can order for herself."

And that's when the fight started.....



________________________________



My wife and I were sitting at a table at her high school reunion, and she

kept staring at a drunken man swigging his drink as he sat alone at a nearby table.

I asked her, "Do you know him?"

"Yes", she sighed,

"He's my old boyfriend.... I understand he took to drinking right after we

split up those many years ago, and I hear he hasn't been sober since."

"My God!" I said, "Who would think a person could go on celebrating that long?"

And then the fight started...



________________________________



When our lawn mower broke and wouldn't run, my wife kept hinting to me

that I should get it fixed. But, somehow I always had something else to take

care of first, the shed, the boat, making beer.. Always something more

important to me. Finally she thought of a clever way to make her point.

When I arrived home one day, I found her seated in the tall grass, busily

snipping away with a tiny pair of sewing scissors. I watched silently for

a short time and then went into the house.. I was gone only a minute, and

when I came out again I handed her a toothbrush. I said, "When you finish

cutting the grass, you might as well sweep the driveway."

The doctors say I will walk again, but I will always have a limp.



________________________________



My wife sat down next to me as I was flipping channels.

She asked, "What's on TV?"

I said, "Dust."

And then the fight started...

________________________________



Saturday morning I got up early, quietly dressed, made my lunch, and

slipped quietly into the garage. I hooked up the boat up to the van, and

proceeded to back out into a torrential downpour. The wind was blowing 50 mph, so I

pulled back into the garage, turned on the radio, and discovered that the

weather would be bad all day. I went back into the house, quietly

undressed, and slipped back into bed.. I cuddled up to my wife's back, now with a

different anticipation, and whispered, "The weather out there is terrible."

My loving wife of 5 years replied, "And, can you believe my stupid husband

is out fishing in that?"

And that's how the fight started...



________________________________



My wife was hinting about what she wanted for our upcoming anniversary.

She said, "I want something shiny that goes from 0 to 150 in about 3 seconds."

I bought her a bathroom scale.

And then the fight started......



________________________________



After retiring, I went to the Social Security office to apply for Social Security.

The woman behind the counter asked me for my driver's License to verify my age.

I looked in my pockets and realized I had left my wallet at home.

I told the woman that I was very sorry, but I would have to go home and come back later.

The woman said, 'Unbutton your shirt'.

So I opened my shirt revealing my curly silver hair.

She said, 'That silver hair on your chest is proof enough for me' and she

processed my Social Security application..

When I got home, I excitedly told my wife about my experience at the Social Security office...

She said, 'You should have dropped your pants. You might have gotten disability, too.'

And then the fight started...