On Writing: A Memoir Of The Craft by Stephen King

 On Writing:

A Memoir Of The Craft

By

 Stephen King

A work of non-fiction by Stephen King,  On Writing,  has a lot of autobiographical information in it.  This sharing by the author makes the book very entertaining to people who do not have aspirations to write as well as those who are inspiring authors.   In the middle of the book King addresses the process of writing.  He includes how he approaches the creative process along with pitfalls to avoid with sentence structure and word choices.   King also addresses the business end of the publishing and makes suggestions on how to approach publishers and how to find a reputable agent.   This book does not take long to read and it is written in easily understood language.  It is a book that is encouraging people who have an interest in writing to write what they want in the way they want.  For those that are interested in the world of writing and for those that are interested in knowing more about the author this book is an excellent choice to read.   I ran across it on a recommended reading list from a writers workshop and it is obvious to me why it was on the list.  Please click on the author's name and book title above to follow three links to more information.  And enjoy the interview with Stephen King that follows. 

No Ordinary Time by Doris Kearns Goodwin

No Ordinary Time

by

Doris Kearns Goodwin

Our local library recently added a service called Hoopla.   For my first audio selection, in order to try it out,  I selected a book by Doris Kearns Goodwin, who I have admired for several years and now is one of my go to authors for non-fiction.  I had enjoyed her Team of Rivals a few years back and wanted to enjoy another one of her books.  Since Elenor Roosevelt is a favorite person of history for me and I also admire FDR,  I decided to listen to No Ordinary Time - Franklin & Elenor Roosevelt: The Home Front In World War II.  She did not disappoint me.   The first couple's lives and world impact during WWII is explained clearly  and in an interesting way through out this book. Ms Goodwin points out their many strong points but she also points out their short comings.  Because of listening to this book I have a much more realistic view of the Roosevelts.   I have had aspirations to visit all of FDR's homes for quite some time and now those trips are very much on my bucket list.  Please click on the book title and the author's name above to follow links to more information. And please take the time to read this book.  It will be clear to whomever takes the time to enjoy the book why the author won a Pulitzer Prize for it.   In the video that follows Doris Kearns Goodwin tells a short story about FDR.   As far as the Hoopla service goes,  the phone app locked up so I finished listening to it on my iPad.  

The Hamilton Affair by Elizabeth Cobbs

The Hamilton Affair

by

Elizabeth Cobbs

My local library book group met yesterday and discussed The Hamilton Affair by Elizabeth Cobbs as the selection for this month.  I did not get my blog written prior to the meeting because I only finished the book the evening before so I felt that maybe I would get some added input from the meeting and delayed writing the review.  I was pleased that I was asked why my review was not written.  My blog is occasionally read.   The book was not well liked by those that attended the meeting.  While my genre is historical fiction I do not feel like this book is historical fiction.  It is more of a historical romance.  It lacked the depth of detail that I like in a historical fiction novel.  Each chapter jumped chasms of time.  While reading the book I felt like the author didn't want to take the time to write the type of book the story demanded.  She had identified a great basis for a story and a wonderful idea for a story line.  I was disappointed with the book.   But it is an easy read about an interesting topic and many others may well enjoy it.  It has also interested me in reading more about Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton.  Please click on the book title and author's name above to follow links to more information and enjoy the video that follows.  

Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset

Kristin Lavransdatter

by

Sigrid Undset

Every few books that I listen to from my audible account I choose a very long one.  That way it takes over a month to listen to it and I have a couple of credits that stack up to listen to more than one shorter book for a little while without spending money on additional credits.  The selection that I chose to be my long one this time was indeed long.  It was a forty hour trilogy called Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset.   The setting of the books is Norway in the 1300s.  The author uses a lot of detailed descriptions to make what life was like in that time and place very real.   I found the diseases and injuries that occurred and how they were treated very interesting.  A large part of the book deals with the superstitions people had back then during the beginnings of the orthodox church.  The first book describes a young woman's love story and proceeds from her childhood to her marriage.  The second book covers the time of her married life where she is a young mother.  The third book takes Kristin from her empty nest struggles to widowhood and then up to her own death.  Although I found the foreign sounding names confusing I was able to follow the book enough to know what was happening.   It was very interesting me to how the people lived back then.  The natural elements of the cold climate made it very challenging to survive.   But what shocked me the most was that while people lived very differently so much remains the same.  The book deals with relationships between parents and children and husbands and wives and raises issues that people continue to have today.  These novels were a bit of a challenge to get through but very much worth sticking with them.  I highly recommend the trilogy and think it should be required reading in school.  I don't understand why I was never exposed to this book or why I never heard of it before.  I am not sure how it came into view for me but I am glad I heard of it and listened to it.  Please click on the book title and authors name above to follow links to more information.  And watch the video that follows that is a review of the book.  I hope this is made into a mini series someday.  I am surprised it has not yet been.  One movie was made from it in the mid 1990's but it was not in English.  I would definatley encourage people to take the time to enjoy this book.