A well-written, well-researched book, it is no wonder it received a Pulitzer Prize. This is the story of Thurgood Marshall and racism in the south in the 1940's and 1950's. There is so much in this book that I never knew about and although I thought I was somewhat familiar with Marshall's life, I really didn't know much at all.
But I feel I need to warn you. I couldn't read it before I went to sleep. And I could only read it for a few pages and then I had to put it away. It is hard to read this part of our history and realize it is not that long ago. And then to turn on the news and see the acts of racism that still exist. I'm sending it your way, BT. I think you can handle it better than I did. -June
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Tuesday, March 10, 2015
The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
Obviously, I'm not a big reader of non-fiction. But after listening to an interview with this author and reading some of the book reviews, I was anxious to read this one. The story is all about the 1936 US Olympic Gold Medal Crew team. They were just a bunch of kids attending the University of Washington - sons of farmers and blue color workers. And they ended up competing against the east coast schools and ultimately went to Berlin and won in front of Hitler. But history has ignored them up until now. After the Olympics, they came home and finished college, got married, started families, and put those gold medals in the attic.
I learned a lot more about boats and rowing than I needed to know, but the author had obviously done his research. The stories of the individual young men was well written and often heartbreaking. I'm sure this will be a movie, but I almost don't want anyone to mess with this wonderful story. Highly recommend. -June
I learned a lot more about boats and rowing than I needed to know, but the author had obviously done his research. The stories of the individual young men was well written and often heartbreaking. I'm sure this will be a movie, but I almost don't want anyone to mess with this wonderful story. Highly recommend. -June
The Banks of Certain Rivers by Jon Harrison
I really need to be better about posting right after I finish a book. I loved this book and recommended it to several friends, but then forgot to write about it here. And with my feeble memory...... well, I remember the book but some of the details have slipped away in the 5 or 6 weeks since I finished it. Ahhh, senility.
This is one of those books that appeared on BookBub and sounded interesting and was very inexpensive. And it turned out to be a good read. This is the story of a man who is a high school teacher and coach. He's married with a son; however, we quickly learn that his wife has been in an accident and is hospitalized. Our beloved coach is accused of something and the trouble escalates. I don't want to spoil it for you, but the case of characters is interesting and the relationship between the coach and his son is key to the book. There's even a touch of technology there that the geek in me appreciated. I recommend this one. -June
This is one of those books that appeared on BookBub and sounded interesting and was very inexpensive. And it turned out to be a good read. This is the story of a man who is a high school teacher and coach. He's married with a son; however, we quickly learn that his wife has been in an accident and is hospitalized. Our beloved coach is accused of something and the trouble escalates. I don't want to spoil it for you, but the case of characters is interesting and the relationship between the coach and his son is key to the book. There's even a touch of technology there that the geek in me appreciated. I recommend this one. -June
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