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Book Review: Beowulf for Cretins by Ann McMan, Reviewed by Velvet Lounger
The following review first appeared at the Lesbian Reading RoomBeowulf for Cretins, by Ann McMan
Print Length: 320 pages
Publisher: Bywater Books (June 26, 2018)Take one rather lost and lonely English professor and sit her next to a gorgeous, intellectual and amusing woman on a flight to San Francisco. Bring them back together for a madcap costume party that evening, and make both of them brave enough to step out of their comfort zones and “go there.” That’s the basic plot of Ann McMan’s wonderful short story “Falling from Grace” in her anthology “Sidecar,” which led to the idea of “Beowulf for Cretins.”
Don’t worry if you haven’t read “Sidecar” (although if not, why not?) as the slightly amended story is repeated as chapter one of the full-length version. And once Grace and Abbie go their separate ways the morning after the party, with no contact details, not even last names shared, then surely it will take an act of fate, or possibly an act of God, to make their paths cross a second time.
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Book Review: Shapeshifters: A Journey Through the Changing Human Body, by Gavin Francis
By Terri Schlichenmeyer
The Bookworm SezShapeshifters: A Journey Through the Changing Human Body, by Gavin Francis
c.2018, Basic Books $27.00 / $35.50 Canada
283 pagesChange, they say, is good.
It’s the opportunity for growth. It’s a chance to take a breath, reassess, reconfigure. It makes the landscape look fresh; it also muddies the waters. And yet, you bounce back and, as you’ll see in “Shapeshifters” by Gavin Francis, so does your body.
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Book Review: Hype: A Doctor’s Guide to Medical Myths, Exaggerated Claims and Bad Advice, by Nina Shapiro, MD with Kristin Loberg
By Terri Schlichenmeyer
The Bookworm Sez“Hype: A Doctor’s Guide to Medical Myths, Exaggerated Claims and Bad Advice –
How to Tell What’s Real and What’s Not” by Nina Shapiro, MD with Kristin Loberg
c.2018, St. Martin’s Press $26.99 / $34.99 Canada 304 pagesFor the last few days, you’ve had a tickle in your throat.
It’s not much, just a hrrumph that’s gone from occasional to annoying. You’ve looked it up online and, well, it’s either allergies, a cold, or you’re going to die. But, as author Nina Shapiro, MD says in her new book, “Hype” (with Kristin Loberg), be careful what you think you know.
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Book Review: Tough Mothers: Amazing Stories of History’s Mightiest Matriarchs, by Jason Porath
By Terri Schlichenmeyer
The Bookworm Sez“Tough Mothers: Amazing Stories of History’s Mightiest Matriarchs” by Jason Porath
c.2018, Dey Street $24.99 / $31.00 Canada
244 pagesYour mom is tough as nails.
The minute you were placed in her arms, she became your personal warrior, cheerleader, and banker. She remembers the good things you did and (sigh) the dumb things you tried. She pretends to forget why she ever gave you That Look. And in the new book “Tough Mothers” by Jason Porath, you’ll meet other women just like her.
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Book Review: The Language of Kindness, by Christie Watson
By Terri Schlichenmeyer
The Bookworm Sez“The Language of Kindness” by Christie Watson
c.2018, Tim Duggan Books $27.00 / $32.95 Canada
336 pagesThere was a time in your life when you tried everything.
Full-time, part-time, gig-worker, entrepreneurship, you changed jobs like most people change clothes. It’s exhausting and disheartening and author Christie Watson had the same experience: café worker, milk deliverer, video shop clerk, she tried them all but in the new book “The Language of Kindness,” she tells how she settled upon her best job of all.
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May Featured Author: Sue Katz
Author and Activist Sue Katz Author Sue Katz’s business card identifies her as a “wordsmith and rebel.” A lifelong activist for social justice, she has lived and worked on three continents: first as a martial arts master, then promoting transnational volunteering, and most recently teaching fitness and dance to seniors and elders. She earned her BA from Boston University in 1970, her Tae Kwon Do Black Belt in 1975, and her MA in English Literature in 1985.
Sue’s fiction and non-fiction work has been published for decades in anthologies, magazines, and online. Her journalism includes travelogues, dance reviews, and political commentary. Her two most recent books are her collection of short fiction about the love lives of older people Lillian’s Last Affair and other stories, and her novel about the love affair between two old women in senior housing Lillian in Love. She is now working on a collection of “flash fiction” – extremely short stories.
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Book Review: The Rest of It: Hustlers, Cocaine, Depression, and Then Some 1976-1988, by Martin Duberman
By Terri Schlichenmeyer
The Bookworm Sez“The Rest of It: Hustlers, Cocaine, Depression, and Then Some 1976-1988” by Martin Duberman
c.2018, Duke University Press $27.95 / higher in Canada
242 pagesParts of your life are missing.
Maybe you’ve forgotten, purposefully or by accident. You were overwhelmed and didn’t look, too influenced by love, anger, or adult beverages to take full notice. Sometimes, you wonder what’s missing but in the new book, “The Rest of It: Hustlers, Cocaine, Depression, and Then Some 1976-1988” by Martin Duberman, one man’s gaps are filled.
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Book Review: My Patients and Other Animals, by Suzy Fincham-Gray
By Terri Schlichenmeyer
The Bookworm SezMy Patients and Other Animal, by Suzy Fincham-Gray
c.2018, Spiegel & Grau
$27.00 / $36.00 Canada 288 pages
Lions and tigers and bears, Oh, my!
You probably don’t have any of those in your house right now – at least not in their full-size versions – but the kitty and puppy lying nearby might sometimes seem as ferocious as their larger cousins. Oh, my, as you’ll see in the new book “My Patients and Other Animals” by Suzy Fincham-Gray, we’re wild for our pets!
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‘Murder at the Paisley Parrot’ Receives Stellar Review at The Novel Approach
Mark McNease did a terrific job writing Marshall James’s story. The murder mystery was intriguing and suspenseful and made this a page-turner for me. – Maryann
I knew it was coming, but I didn’t know if it would be negative, positive, or mixed. Imagine my delight at getting a stellar review, calling ‘Murder at the Paisley Parrot’ a page turner. Just the shot in the arm a writer needs now and then. And listen for the audiobook arriving any day now, narrated by the fabulous Fred Wolinsky.
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Book Review: Would You Rather? A Memoir of Growing Up and Coming Out, by Katie Heaney
By Terri Schlichenmeyer
The Bookworm Sez“Would You Rather? A Memoir of Growing Up and Coming Out” by Katie Heaney
c.2018, Ballantine Books
$16.00 / $22.00 Canada 256 pagesSometimes funny, sometimes self-depreciatingly cringe-worthy, “Would You Rather?” is a refreshing change over the I’ve-known-since-I-was-a-child LGBTQ memoirs. Readers may also notice that it’s a bit overboard.
You’re late!
Oops, you overslept, got caught in traffic, the elevator was slow. Phone lines were down, email was down. You forgot, and you’re late, sorry. Or, as in the new book “Would You Rather?” by Katie Heaney, your understanding was just a bit delayed.
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Book Review: Tomorrow Will Be Different, by Sarah McBride
By Terri Schlichenmeyer
The Bookworm Sez“Tomorrow Will Be Different” by Sarah McBride
c.2018, Crown Archetype $26.00 / $35.00 Canada
288 pagesThings are never as bad as they seem.
There’s always a brighter spot if you just look for it, always something to be thankful for, a way of making yourself feel better because things aren’t as they seem. As in the new book “Tomorrow Will Be Different” by Sarah McBride, there’s always a chance to make a change.
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Book Review: The Toronto Book of the Dead, by Adam Bunch
By Terri Schlichenmeyer
The Bookworm“The Toronto Book of the Dead” by Adam Bunch
c.2017, Dundurn $16.99
U.S. and Canada 423 pagesWatch your step!
Be careful where you tread; you don’t want to disturb anything important beneath the soil. Watch your feet; be mindful of where you put them. As you’ll see in “The Toronto Book of the Dead” by Adam Bunch, you’re not the first to walk on hallowed grounds.