Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania by Erik Larson

 Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania by Erik Larson.

                                Adult nonfiction.

Since Erik Larson’s In the Garden of Beasts was one of my neighborhood  book group’s favorite books, I was eager to read Dead Wake. Larson writes nonfiction that pulls readers in and with so many details that readers think they  are there . He teaches history without pain and fuss!  Dead Wake builds like the drama it is. Larson’s extensive research provides names and details about many of the ship’s passengers. One chapter tells exactly what life in a submarine was like. Readers see the grieving President Woodrow Wilson as he finds a new love and woos Edith. While the United States learns of German attacks across the Atlantic, it does not actually enter the war until two years after the attack on the Lusitania. The sinking of the huge ship carrying so many American, so many families and children, and, yes, so many munitions definitely changed the course of the war and America’s role in it. Larson tells human interest details as well as the details of troops, the British Admiralty, and German submarine movements. Especially interesting are the final pages of extensive bibliography references and citations. While he admits that he is a writer, not an expert on World War I history, Larson’s focused expertise serves him well in this suspenseful and dramatic account about which so many Americans know very little.

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Many thanks to  Blogging for Books from whom I received this book in exchange for reviewing it.

Stillwater by Nicole Helget

    Stillwater by Nicole Helget.
                                          Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014. Adult Fiction.

 
  Clement and Angel are born as twins, but live very different lives. Clement, a sickly boy, grows up in the local orphanage. Angel, the girl baby, is adopted by one of the wealthiest couples in Stillwater. Life for neither is easy.

  In this historical fiction, the mid 1800’s in the Minnesota area come alive through the adventures of  characters including a trapper, a nun, a Native American woman, and the twin children.  Rich with history, detail, heartbreak, humor, survival, and longings for love, the journeys of these early settlers grabs readers and brings us along for the unforgettable ride.

  The sentences are finely crafted, if sometimes quite lengthy. The research she must have done on trapping, medical care, and  clothing paid off richly in the believable details. The voices of the different characters ring true in the ways that she portrays their dialogs.  The book is laugh-out-loud funny in several places. I particularly enjoyed the running joke about Texas being annexed and the trappers not knowing the meaning of "annexed", but thinking it sounded both interesting and terrible!

  Five years of living with these characters may seem like a long time, but one reading is much too short.  Hopefully, Ms. Helget will continue writing! Check out her previous award winning works, The Turtle Catcher and a memoir, The Summer of Ordinary Ways.

Mastering Pasta: The Art and Practice of Handmade Pasta, Gnocchi, and Risotto by Marc Vetri with David Joachim

  Mastering Pasta: The Art and Practice of Handmade Pasta, Gnocchi, and Risotto by Marc Vetri with David Joachim. 2015. Ten Speed Press. Adult nonfiction.

I confess that I have always wanted to make homemade pasta. The thought of plump little pillows of ravioli stuffed with my own combinations has always been balanced by the thought of flour all over the kitchen, hard-to-clean rollers, and tough dough. Just the title of Mastering Pasta may be just the counterbalance to push me over the edge to really try making pasta. In 261 pages filled with colorful photographs and straightforward words, the authors help both experienced and novice home cooks begin and perfect pasta dishes.  

Of course, I turned first to the chapter on ravioli and stuffed pasta. From the dough to the fillings to the cheeses, Vetri discussed pasta making. What a relief to learn that I don’t need fancy equipment at all! But, oh,oh, the first recipe calls for ricotta impastata cheese. What on earth is that? Helpfully, the author gives a page number to a definition. He mentions his favorite brand and even how to make this yourself. Clearly written instructions make this sound not so daunting after all.

Chapters include  information about hand-formed pasta, gnocchi, stocks and sauces,  baked sheet pasta, and lots about flavor, ingredients, and authentic Italian ways to do things.  It’s interesting reading. Several sequences of smaller photographs show process and procedure. Large full-color illustrations show dishes ready to eat.

Are there recipes I’ll never make? Certainly! Porcini pasta with snail and porcini ragu is not at the top of my list. Bluefoot mushroom risotto with castelmagno cheese sounds beyond both my capabilities and the limits of my local grocery. But, are there recipes I can dream about? Oh, yes, and making a great egg yolk dough is among them!

Basically this book has something for all cooks. On page 6, it states, “The only true path to the quest of mastering  pasta is to continue making it.” With these recipes, my shopping list, and this book, I’m ready to start the learning curve. Or maybe just take a trip to Italy and taste the REAL thing? Either way, I’m happy!

Many thanks to Blogging for Books. I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

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Unbecoming: A Novel by Rebecca Scherm

 Unbecoming: A Novel by Rebecca Scherm. Viking (Penguin), 2015. Adult fiction.




In an unusual tale of art theft, deceit, and love, this debut novel begins in Paris where Grace has crafted a new life for herself as Julie. She checks online everyday for news from her former home in Garland, Tennessee where it seems the robbery of an estate museum has involved and imprisoned people Grace knows very well. Chapters alternate by place, Paris providing clues to her current life and Garland filling in the details of Grace's former life. Peppered with intriguing examples of other thefts and how they may have been committed, the author also weaves a spell of a small town and its citizens, children, and social stratas. What happens if you get what you really want? What happens if you don't? Can you become someone else? Or can you unbecome who you have become?

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins. Riverhead Books (Penguin), 2015. Adult fiction.      


In three weeks, when I only moved slightly up from 148 on the waiting list at our public library,  I went out and bought this book. Billed as the one to read if you liked Gone Girl, this debut thriller did not disappoint!  


Rachel has her own problems. She has lost her job, but not told her roommate. She drinks too much. She lies. Her husband has moved on with another woman, but still lives in the same house, HER house. In the endless train rides into London which provide the only normalcy in her life, she makes up a fantasy life for a couple at the signal stop, the one just down from her former home. It's impossible  not to stare into the yards of the houses along the train tracks. Before long, Rachel sees something amiss. This leads her into the lives of other people in big and subtle ways. But, is she a reliable witness?


Alternating chapters from viewpoints of Rachel, Megan (the woman Rachel watches), and Anna (her ex-husband's new spouse), the suspense builds. At first, you need a playcard to keep the names straight since even the men's names seem too alike (Tom, Scott, Jason). But, when you are drawn into the drama, you won't be able to stop reading. Words flow across the pages quickly, but the ending does not seem rushed. The threads of the story are twisted together into a smooth yarn. Let's hope that Paula Hawkins' former journalism career allowed her to keep lots of notes on ideas for more novels like this one.