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A Gate at the Stairs by Lorrie Moore

by Kara on March 12th, 2010
A Gate at the Stairs by Lorrie Moore Cover Image

In this post 9/11 coming-of-age story, twenty year old Tassie Keltjin leaves her small Midwestern town to begin her education at the state university.  In addition to her studies, she takes a job as a nanny for a family who is desperately attempting to adopt a child.  Tassie is soon torn between two worlds – her hometown that is comfortable but “changed” for Tassie after discovering the world of academia, and school where she doesn’t quite fit in and yet she’s eager to learn.  She soon learns more than she will ever learn in a classroom, and she’s not quite sure she’s comfortable with everything she is learning.

I listened to this book and Mia Barron’s narration is very good.  Lorrie Moore’s A Gate at the Stairs is a provocative book that gives the reader a lot to think about.

Published in Audiobooks, Fiction
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American musicians meet African counterparts

by John on March 11th, 2010

A couple of recent documentaries show American musicians interacting with their African peers.  The banjo came from western Africa, so banjo genius Bela Fleck’s 2008 visit seems natural.  In Throw Down Your Heart he made four stops, to play with locals.  He looks so baffled and tentative at first, one suspects he battled some kind of traveler’s malady, but gamely plucks along.  He hits his stride in Mali, tho, where many of Africa’s best known musicians are from, finally catching fire.  Fleck can play anything and proves it here.

Back in 1974 Muhammad Ali fought Joe Frazier in the Rumble in the Jungle in Zaire, as documented in When We Were Kings.   Hugh Masakela convinced promoter Don King to include a music festival as part of the show, featuring  James Brown (wearing a hilarious costume), BB King, the Spinners, Celia Cruz, the Commodores, Bill Withers, and more.  Soul Power documents this.

Big Black contributes a jaw-dropping hand drum solo.  Brown is, well, James Brown, higher praise than which I cannot provide.  King performs “The Thrill Is Gone.” Miriam Makeba steals the show with the Click Song. The African acts tend to be drummers and costumed dancers, and mostly get  short shrift.  There’s also a bit too much footage of promoters and lawyers, but this is mostly good stuff.

Published in Movies & Documentaries, Music, Popular, Travel
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La’s Orchestra Saves the World by Alexander McCall Smith

by Maeve on March 11th, 2010
La’s Orchestra Saves the World by Alexander McCall Smith Cover Image

I thoroughly enjoyed La’s Orchestra Saves the World by Alexander McCall Smith, however, not all reviewers did. The novel is a stand-alone and while the protagonist does solve a mystery, it is quite different from McCall Smith’s The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency  or the Sunday Philosophy Club series. I found the story to be an evocative read.

The majority of the story takes place in rural Suffolk during World War II, where La, (short for Lavender) Stone, retreats after her marriage fails and assault on London begins in earnest.  La joins the Women’s Land Army and begins to her integration into the rural neighborhood.  La starts an orchestra drawing from townsfolk and the nearby airbase.

If you enjoyed The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society I think you would like La’s Orchestra too.

Published in Historical Fiction
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Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman

by Kara on March 10th, 2010
Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman Cover Image

CeeCee Honeycut is a smart twelve-year-old girl who has the burden of caring for her mentally ill mother.  After her mother’s sudden death, CeeCee is “saved” by her previously unknown great-aunt, Tootie Caldwell, from Savannah and Tootie’s group of women-friends.  Through humor, good food, great books, and new friendships, CeeCee discovers a new world and realizes that although she has lost one mother, she’s gained many more “mothers” who care for her.   CeeCee slowly learns that she can trust … and thrive … in her new world.  ~~Enjoy~~

Published in Audiobooks, Fiction
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Of Superman and Cedar Rapids

by Ardis on March 9th, 2010

Michael Daugherty is a very American composer. Born in 1954, his work is often inspired by the popular culture and American icons of his youth, including Jackie O, J. Edgar Hoover, Elvis, UFO’s, Route 66, and Niagara Falls. According to the League of American Orchestras, he’s one of the 10 most performed living American composers.

Daugherty’s Metropolis Symphony was inspired by his childhood love of Superman comic books. It’s an energetic work that balances  modernism and explosive rhythms with lovely melodies. I’m especially drawn the last movement titled Red Cape Tango. Fire and Blood, a work for violin and orchestra, was commissioned by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and was inspired by murals about the automotive industry by Mexican artist, Diego Rivera. Daugherty’s latest work, Letters from Lincoln, is a very human portrait of Abraham Lincoln. It was just released on CD after it’s world premiere performance by the Spokane Symphony Orchestra with soloist Thomas Hampson, baritone.

So what’s the connection to Cedar Rapids? Well, I was surprised to find out that  Professor Daugherty (he teaches music composition at the University of Michigan) grew up in Cedar Rapids. According to the Michigan Muse, Fall 2009 issue, he led a rock-jazz-funk band that played at weddings, proms and dances all over Eastern Iowa when he was in high school.

Published in Music, Classical
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Up!

by Beth on March 3rd, 2010

After my last less than satisfying animation adventure (see my blog post about “Monsters vs. Aliens”)  I needed a Pixar fix in a bad way.   Up to the rescue!Up cover

Written and Directed by Pixar vunderkin Pete Doctor, the man behind Monsters Inc. , Toy Story,  Mike’s new car, and Wall-E, Up is classic Pixar.  With  real characters, and a real story with all the twists, turns, and fantastic animation we’ve all come to love from a Pixar film.  And the animation itself was amazing.

Up is the story of Carl Fredricksen.  A shy young boy with dreams of becoming a famous explorer like his idol Charles Muntz.  Carl meets his match in Ellie, a young girl determined to see the world.  In a dialogless  sequence we see Carl and Ellie grow up, marry, and build a life together.  A life with all sorts of ups, downs, and adventures.  We see them grow old together, and see Ellie pass away.

Now Carl is left a lone, an elderly man, set in his ways.  Determined to spend his days in the house he and Ellie built, as the world changes around him.   When he’s forced out of his home and into a retirement home, Carl comes up with a way to have one last great adventure – and take his house with him.

As he’s plotting his escape, Russell appears on his doorstep.   Russell is a young boy trying to earn his “assist the elderly” badge for Adventure Scouts, and has decided to help Carl, even though Carl neither wants or needs help.

When Carl sets off on his great adventure to find the Lost Paradise Falls,  Russell accidentally  comes along.  Together they make their way to  South America, where they meet a giant bird Russel names Kevin.  They are befriended by a large dog who, thanks to his amazing collar,  is able to talk to humans.  His name is Dug, and it turns out his evil owner is none other than missing adventurer Charles Muntz.

Muntz has spent his lifetime trying to find a bird like Kevin, and will do anything he can to capture Kevin – dead or alive.  Carl and Russel battle Muntz first to save Kevin and then to save themselves.

Up is a great movie in may ways.  The animation is fantastic, and the adventure will suck you in.  But what I liked best is the relationship that builds between the elderly Carl and the young Russel.  As they are forced to rely on each other, they being to respect and care for each other as well.  And in the end we see how truly close they have become.

NOTE:  as with any other good comedy, stay for the credits.  It’s not really a gag real, but through photographs and post cards, you’ll see that this wasn’t actually the last adventure for Carl, Russell and Dug.

Published in Movies & Documentaries
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DM Stith – Heavy Ghost

by Jason on February 23rd, 2010

DM Stith’s full-length CD debut “Heavy Ghost” now dominates my “Top 25 Most Played” iTunes playlist and won the coveted “Jason’s Album of the Year” award in 2009. It’s a travesty that the record industry doesn’t recognize this prestigious award…also lack of funding makes a ceremony (or trophy) impossible. Still.

This is an album for the long dark winter months – lush soundscapes of fingerpicked guitar, dramatic piano, found sounds, and complex percussion. These instruments serve as backdrops that emphasize the multi-tracked arrangements of his unique voice. A more instrumental second half of the album highlights Stith’s falsetto crooning. In the album’s climax, “Braid of Voices”, Stith sings a round based on the lines, “From the back of my head/tied/to the back of my head” over a background chorus woven of his own howling and sighing. What sticks with me the most from this haunting album is its ability to channel an abundance of creativity into a cohesive audio experience.

Published in Music, Popular
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Fodor’s vs. Frommer’s

by Candice on February 22nd, 2010
Fodor’s vs. Frommer’s Cover Image

There they are, the two big f-words in the world of travel guides…Fodor’s and Frommer’s. They’re about the same size, they both have lots of color pictures in the newer editions, they cost about the same, and they cover the same countries and areas…what, exactly, is the difference between them? Not to mention all the other guides that line the shelves in the 910-919 range. Sure, you could check out a bunch of them, but you probably won’t read them all, and you certainly don’t want to take them all on a vacation. So, which guide is the one for you?

If you’re a student/younger/budget traveler, Rough Guides or Lonely Planet will probably suit you pretty well. Both of them are solid, no-nonsense guides with low and mid-range budgets in mind. They are practical, have a nice focus on nightlife and social scenes, and review many lodging options, including budget hotels and hostels. These are the guides I used when I traveled in my twenties…the Europe on a Shoestring guide is a solid (and heavy) book, and it was the only guide I needed for a two-month trip. Lonely Planet can also be a good guide for more adventurous travelers who are going to unusual places, as they cover some destinations that other guides don’t, and they contain extensive information on current political conditions, health concerns, and any necessary legalities.

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Published in Travel
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Nonfiction for Novel Readers

by Heidi on February 19th, 2010
Nonfiction for Novel Readers Cover Image

Provenance:  How a Con Man and a Forger Rewrote the History of Modern Art by Laney Salisbury and Aly Sujo.

Provenance is the true story of John Drewe, a con man who entangled innocent friends, strangers, an impoverished painter, and art dealers, museums and archivists in his art fraud crimes.  The story reads like good detective fiction:  I quickly was invested in the characters and couldn’t wait to learn what happened next.  Even though you know from the beginning of the book that Drewe is the culprit, there is a good deal of suspense as you see him yet again slipping through the fingers of the law and the members of the art world who are beginning to catch on to him.

The reader learns much along the way about art auctions, museums and their archives.  Art forgeries are nothing new and may be more common than most people think.  What made Drewe’s crimes so insidious, though, was his corruption of archival histories to establish fraudulent provenance of the forgeries he was trafficking.

Unlike most fictional detective stories, the ending of this story is not so tidy.  In the epilogue, the authors provide satisfying summaries of where these real-life characters are in the years after Drewe’s trial and conviction.  Disturbingly, however, we learn that John Drewe–thief, pathological liar and possibly a murderer–is free on the streets again.

Published in Arts & Crafts, Mystery & Suspense, Nonfiction
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The Story of a boy who liked the Beatles.

by Terri on February 19th, 2010

Who would have thought a book about addiction , poverty and music could be so funny? I have been aware of Ozzy Osbourne for many years and while not a fan of his type of music I do realize that he did have a special gift. Born in a family that was very poor, Osbourne grew up listening to the radio and through a lot of hard work found himself on the radio with his own group Black Sabbath.  Sabbath, was one of the pioneering groups that performed Heavy Metal Rock andRoll.  Sabbath is in The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for their importance and how that group started is just one of the many stories outlined in I am Ozzy, by Ozzy Osbourne. Osbourne is a addict. You will read a number of stories about his adventures and while they are sad Osbourne along with co author Chris Ayers,  writes them as if you are having a conversation.  Osbourne covers it all. From his childhood to the Sabbath years to meeting the woman who saw the potential in him, Sharon.  Their over 30 year relationship is the backbone of this book. Yes, Ozzy bit the head off a bat in Des Moines. Yes, he urinated on the Alamo, one of the funniest stories in the book by the way. Yes, he almost died a few years ago in a ridding accident. And he has ingested every mind altering substance there is. But beyond all that is the tale of a man who loves his five children, is totally devoted to his wife and who is a very very talented song writer. You may not like his music but you find after reading this book that you like the man and am stymied about how he remembered it all.

Published in Uncategorized
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