The Man Of Many Fathers

I borrowed The Man Of Many Fathers: Life Lessons disguised As A Memoir, written by Roy Wood Jr. from the  library. Although I had never heard of the author before he is a well known writer, producer, actor and comic. He hosted the 2023 White House Correspondents' dinner. He writes about his strict, hard working mother and his mostly absent father. His father was a well known radio personality and civil rights leader in Birmingham, Alabama.  He didn't get into too much trouble as a kid except that one time when he and his friends adapted their leaf races in the stream behind the house. They added burning piles of pine needles on top of the leaves and started a forest fire. The author had an interesting story to tell.

 

 

The First Lie Wins

 Ashley Elston is the author of The First Lie Wins. This is a best selling mystery novel about a con woman named Evie Porter (not her real name). She works for a Mister Smith who gives her jobs to do in various cities in the southern states. Evie is extremely smart and clever and manages to be successful on nearly all her assignments. Although mysteries are not my favorite, this book is paced well, full of action, and all the threads get resolved by the end. 

 

 

The Nickel Boys

 The Nickel Boys is the second Pulitzer Prize that Colson Whitehead won. His first is called The Underground Railroad. This book is set in Florida in the 1960's. The story is about a black youth named Elwood. Elwood lives with his grandmother who is very strict. She won't let him listen to music nor the radio. He can listen to speeches by Martin Luther King, Jr. Elwood is a good kid and a great student. He is admitted entrance to college classes while still in high school. Just before he is to enter his college classes he hitches a ride to another city in Florida. He and the driver are pulled over by police because they are driving a Plymouth. The officer believes no one with their skin color can afford a Plymouth so it must be stolen. Elwood ends up at the Nickel Academy which is a reform school full of corruption and cruelty. This captivating story is based on a real reform school in Florida.

 

 

Flappers And Philosophers

I listened to F. Scott Fitzgerald's collection of short stories called Flappers And Philosophers. These stories were published individually in magazines before being collected into a book. The first four stories were about flappers. I noticed each flapper had long legs, blond hair and was about 19 years old. In his lifetime, Fitzgerald was known for his short stories in magazines and not for novels. The second story involves a flapper from the deep south. The story is called the Ice Palace.  She comes to Saint Paul with her fiancee to meet his family. She has never seen snow and is captivated. She wants to try all the winter sports which her fiancee reluctantly goes along with until she realizes that these sports are for kids, not young ladies. At the end of the story they visit an ice palace with a large group of friends at the end of the day. She becomes separated. Thinking the ice palace is empty, the organizers turn off all the lights. She is trapped in an ice palace thinking she will freeze to death. This is a great story. The rest of the book is about young men at the beginning of their careers full of idealistic ideas that fade away as they mature. I am so glad I found this book.

 

  

The Audition

 Katie Kitamura is the author of the award winning book called The Audition. Some people find this book to be fascinating. I found it to be confusing. The first half of the book is about an actress who lives with her husband in New York City. She walks to the theater every day to rehearse or perform. She meets a young man who is an assistant on the production. This young man thinks she is his birth mother. The actress did not ever give birth so she knows it's not true. In the second half of the book she admits she is his mother. Confusing much? This book might be too highbrow for me.

 

 

Cyan Magenta Yellow Black

Although it sounds like I am writing about a color wheel, Cyan Magenta Yellow Black is actually a book written by Kevin Fenton. The author grew up in Rollingstone and Winona, MN before moving to Saint Paul is his 20's. He wrote about a character named Duane who had a job at an ad agency. He was fired and had to sign a 12 month non-compete agreement. A year is a long time to be out of your career. As the story starts Duane is walking down Grand Avenue in Saint Paul to attend his support group. Duane is in a 12 step program. This is a fascinating story about a man putting his life back together. 

 

 

Chances Are

 I am a big fan of the author Richard Russo. I loved Empire Falls and Nobody's Fool. I also loved a book by him that I had never seen before. This one is called Chances Are. The story involves three guys who were friends in college. Now they are 66 years old and have gathered together for a weekend on Martha's Vineyard to reminisce about college days. One is a real estate broker in Arizona, one is a musician in Massachusetts, and one is a small publisher in the Midwest. The book goes back and forth in time. In one poignant chapter the three guys are together as they learn their draft numbers for the Vietnam war. Together they try to figure out what happened to their mutual friend, Jacy, who disappeared after being with them at this very house the weekend after their college graduation. The story was riveting.