Tag: book reviewer

Ava Gardner, The Secret Conversations by Peter Evans and Ava Gardner (2013)

Wish I’d been on a bender with Ava. Can see myself now, belly at the bar – ‘nother ‘alf, Ava?

Here she is on sex, booze and buying the farm.

Continue reading Ava Gardner, The Secret Conversations by Peter Evans and Ava Gardner (2013)

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (1885)

Love this book. The best thing about it? Hmm. I’ll go for its pragmatism.

Here’s the boy Huck chewing over what Miss Watson, an old maid with goggles on, tells him about how to live his life, including praying and other worthy stuff.

Continue reading The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (1885)

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith (1943)

Blink and you’ll miss this as it’s unfairly not often enough in best-ever lists.

Maybe that’s because the usual suspects like War and Peace, Don Quixote and yadda yadda yadda have been loitering longer. (Sphincter fix: a humble 77 jostling 151 and whopping 415 years.)

Join little girl Francie with her brother, mama and papa in the astonishing poverty of Brooklyn at the turn of the last century.

It’s tempting to skip through what they were eating, but pause and reflect on this before your next meal.

Continue reading A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith (1943)

The King in Yellow by Raymond Chandler (1950)

Okay, okay – last Chandler nibble for a bit. The indignity of being shot at.

Continue reading The King in Yellow by Raymond Chandler (1950)

Pearls are a Nuisance by Raymond Chandler (1950)

Sticking with Chandler’s style for a few short posts.

Here’s the story’s hero trying to be tough and in control but it not working very well. One’s got to smile.

Continue reading Pearls are a Nuisance by Raymond Chandler (1950)