Books read in 2011

[rolanni]

American Rose, Karen Abbott
The Bull God, Roberta Gellis (e)
Sin in the Second City, Karen Abbott
Of Blood and Honey, Stina Leicht (e)
The God Engines, John Scalzi (e)
Or Else My Lady Keeps the Key, Kage Baker (e)
Unseen, Rachel Caine
Total Eclipse, Rachel Caine
Weight of Stone, Laura Anne Gilman
The Story of Chicago May, Nuala O’Faolain

Originally published at Sharon Lee, Writer. You can comment here or there.

Comments

American Rose

[claire774.livejournal.com]

Wowie! I read the review on Amazon on "American Rose" about Gypsy Rose Lee. What a deal! I couln't read a book like that. I prefer fantasy to reality in my leisure reading. I have read books like that but they are self help and spiritual non fiction books. So tragic the relationship between the two sisters. Very horrible that June Havok took her resentments towards her sister to her grave. I believe in trying to understand such problems and overcome them. Very awful all together. And as for all the unmentionable things that June couldn't say, those are exactly the kind of things that perhaps should be said to some trusted somebody. I'm wondering if alcoholism and/or drug addiction didn't fit into this story. Perhaps there is that in the book. I'll leave the reading of it to you.
C.

Re: American Rose

[rolanni.livejournal.com]

Actually, it was a very interesting study of the creation of a persona and a life. That a woman of little education and no talent conceived of and executed Gypsy Rose Lee was -- I think we can use "genius" here. The only things she had in her toolbox were ruthlessness, charisma, and fear. And she brokered them into a legend.

Whether she was "happy" or not is beside the point -- certainly she smoked like a chimney and drank like a fish; she went with bad men -- and women, too. That's what her world was. She navigated it, and survived mostly on her own terms. We should all do so much with our lives.