A Star Is Bored

A Star Is Bored: A Novel by Byron Lane      352 pages 

Great story!  If you have ever wondered what it would be like to be a celebrity assistant this is the book for you.   Film star, Kathi Kannon is a mess.  When she hires as her assistant, Charlie Beeson, who has worshipped her from afar all his life so much so that he wanted to be her, he is ecstatic.   He can't believe his luck.  She is his hero and now here he is in her home in her world.  But just like the old adage, "Be careful what you wish for, you might get it."  Comes oh so true for Charlie.   For every fun adventure, every exciting celebrity contact, every shopping trip, every acting gig there are the down sides to be dealt with, like Kathi's drug addiction and Charlie's not wanting to be an enabler.  A fun wacky ride during the good times but a sad reality check during her bizarre drugge out episodes.   An excellently told story coming from an author who was formerly Carrie Fisher's celebrity assistant though he swears the character is not based on her.    A good read from cover to cover.   I recommend it to teenagers on up due to the drug use mentioned, but, a fun book nonetheless. 

- Shirley J.

Wishful Drinking

Title: Wishful Drinking               Author: Carrie Fisher           Hardcover: 163 pgs.       

      This book is quite a departure for me; I don’t think I had read any Hollywood celebrity memoirs before picking up this autobiography.  But, informed about how great it was in the earlier review on this blog and being a fan of her comedy, I thought I’d give it a try.  I was not disappointed.

     Fisher, the now-deceased actress who will forever be Princess Leia to legions of Star Wars fans, had a very hard life.  She was born a Hollywood princess, the daughter of celebrities Eddie Fisher, a famous singer in the 1950’s, and Debbie Reynolds, an actress remembered largely for her role in Singin’ in the Rain.  The first, and perhaps most profound, misfortune to befall the author was the divorce of her parents after her father’s affair with Elizabeth Taylor.  She writes that she dreams (as an adult) that he would come back home to give her a good upbringing, but her wish never came true— her parents never got back together.  She very seldom even saw him.  It exemplified to me the power of fathers in their children’s lives— power both to bless and to curse.  When she grew up, Fisher, like so many Hollywood stars, struggled with substance abuse.  More unusually, she was also afflicted with a mental illness: bipolar disorder.

     But as serious and tragic as these bare facts may sound, this is truly a book of comedy.  The actress suffered so much, presumably, that the only way she could stay sane was by making light of her troubles, as she does in this writing.  I found these memoirs hilarious and very clever, often making me laugh out loud!

     The only major issues I had with the book were that the writing rambled to some extent (it’s very colloquial) and that the author used some crude language.  For the latter reason, I wouldn’t recommend it for children or grown-ups who are very sensitive to vulgar language.  But, for me, the comedy more than made up for all this, so I would still recommend it to most adults.

 - John W.

As You Wish

As You Wish: The Inconceivable Tales from the Making of the Princess Bride by Cary Elwes and Joe Layden     276 pages

From Goodreads:

Cary Elwes was inspired to share his memories and give fans an unprecedented look into the creation of the film while participating in the twenty-fifth anniversary cast reunion. In As You Wish he has created an enchanting experience; in addition to never-before seen photos and interviews with his fellow cast mates, there are plenty of set secrets, backstage stories, and answers to lingering questions about off-screen romances that have plagued fans for years!

Review:

This was such an excellent read. I love The Princess Bride, I love Cary Elwes, and I love that this book exists. It is full of little gifts of knowledge about the making of this magical movie, I laughed and I teared up because it's all so beautiful. This movie means a lot to me and I loved reading how much the people who made it love it, too. I listened to the audiobook - which I'm now going to purchase because it was so, so good! Cary Elwes narrates, but he also has other members of the cast and crew read their own commentary and it's so wonderful to hear. I highly recommend giving it a listen, as well!

The Princess Diarist

The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher     257 pages

"The Princess Diarist is Carrie Fisher’s intimate, hilarious and revealing recollection of what happened behind the scenes on one of the most famous film sets of all time, the first Star Wars movie."

This was a fascinating book. Fisher is so frank and open with her words and the stories she unfolds about her life in this novel are very touching and intimate. Focusing on the Carrie at the beginning of Star Wars, Fisher reveals her head-space at that time, her insecurities (especially about her looks and weight), her reluctance to get into acting and then her subsequent breakthrough into acting as Princess Leia, and, of course, her affair with Harrison Ford, who was 15 years her senior. The glimpses into the show business and what it means to be a recognizable icon are all mulled over within this book and it was a joy to hear Fisher discuss her feelings about being Leia, what it means to be Leia, both to her fans and to herself. I listened to the audio book, hearing her words spoken in her own voice and it was such a fun, enjoyable experience. I could hear her amusement at herself, at the situations she would get into, and the love and endearment she still carried for Star Wars, her costars, and the fans of the films. I was particularly moved by her bits of poetry and poetic-diary excerpts within this book. In the audio, they were read by her daughter, Billie Lourd. They were very moving and so, so beautiful. I honestly would highly recommend this book to any fan of the Star Wars franchise, or of Carrie Fisher, even those who are looking for a quick, fun celebrity memoir. Fisher has such a way with words, she'll definitely get you laughing and she'll definitely make you think. It's a great read.

Squirrel Days

Squirrel Days by Ellie Kemper     256 pages

There comes a time in every sitcom actress’s life when she is faced with the prospect of writing a book. When Ellie Kemper’s number was up, she was ready. Contagiously cheerful, predictably wholesome, and mostly inspiring except for one essay about her husband’s feet, My Squirrel Days is a funny, free-wheeling tour of Ellie’s life—from growing up in suburban St. Louis with a vivid imagination and a crush on David Letterman to moving to Los Angeles and accidentally falling on Doris Kearns Goodwin.

I was so excited to see this book on NetGalley – I knew I had to read it. As a self-proclaimed Office and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt fan, and as a St. Louis native, I knew I had to read Kemper’s book. And I am so glad I did! Kemper’s humor comes across in her writing so well. I giggled constantly while reading this book. Each chapter tells of a different experience or memory from Kemper’s life and she is very open and honest in her writing. She includes a disclaimer in the beginning of the book that her stories will be embellished – and there are plenty of moments where you can see this in action, and it gives the work an artful storytelling quality that I quite enjoyed, because really, everyone remembers things differently than how they happened. Kemper uses this to channel her humor and creates a scene that almost feels like you’re reading the scene of a movie. It was wonderful seeing all the bits and pieces that Kemper includes about St. Louis in her story. St. Louis is both a fairly large city and at the same like a small town (where you bump into people you know more often than not), so it often gets passed up when people consider major cities in the US. It was nice to get this little nod of recognition from Kemper. As she related bits about her childhood, I could easily picture the places she mentions and I got a little thrill every time. It was also amazing to hear a little behind the scenes tidbits from the shows and movies she’s acted in, like getting a little Office trivia. It was very cool to see things from her perspective about a show that I’ve watched so many times. She actually lived some of it! I would definitely recommend this to fans of the Office or Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. It’s also just a really funny book with lots of slice of life scenes that are made larger than life with Kemper’s humor and storytelling. A fun, quick read that’s worth picking up.

American Vertigo

American Vertigo: Traveling America in the Footsteps of Tocqueville by Bernard-Henri Levy, translated by Charlotte Mandell, 308 pages

In 1831, Alexis de Tocqueville traveled across the United States, a journey that ultimately resulted in the classic Democracy in America.  In 2004, Bernard-Henri Levy was contracted by The Atlantic magazine to conduct a new survey of American society.  The two French intellectuals, separated by nearly two centuries, could not be more different: Tocqueville was a Catholic aristocrat wary of "progress", Levy a Jewish liberal, albeit one somewhat estranged from the mainstream by his support for Israel.  Tocqueville wrote for a French audience, Levy for an American magazine.  In the 1830s, the United States was, for the French, a strange distant country with more wilderness than civilization, while by the beginning of the 21st century it was the global hegemon whose influence was unavoidable.

Levy states at the outset that Tocqueville means far more to Americans than to Frenchmen, and indeed his journey seems at times to owe more to On the Road and Easy Rider than Democracy in America - Levy is not exploring a new world, but rather a place he already knows, or thinks he knows.  Certainly it lacks Tocqueville's timelessness - a mere decade later and it is difficult not to smile at the quaintness of a time when Barack Obama was the harbinger of post-racial America and George W Bush was Literally Hitler.  For a long road trip, Levy is an interesting and (despite occasional fits of snobbishness) consistently charming companion, but, sadly, there are no surprises on this journey.  Generally, Levy seems remarkably incurious - he arrives in the US with his conclusions already solidly in place, with the result that most of the book reads as if it could have been written even had he stayed at home.

Beach Party Surf Monkey

Beach Party Surf Monkey by Christ Grabenstein, 301 pages

“Word gets out that the hottest teen idols in Hollywood (plus current YouTube sensation Kevin the Monkey!) will be filming the movie Beach Party Surf Monkey right in St. Pete's Beach, Florida. P.T. and his friend Gloria know that the Wonderland would be the perfect location. Now they just have to convince the producers! But dealing with crazed fans and missing stars will take all of Gloria's business genius and P.T.'s wild stories. Can they save the movie before both it and the Wonderland are all washed up?” These books are for any kid who likes funny stories.  Even though they are ridiculous, they are hilarious and I love them.

Down the Rabbit Hole

Down the Rabbit Hole by Holly Madison, 334 pages



I love me a good memoir, so when I saw this book by Holly Madison, ex-girlfriend of Hugh Hefner, I knew it would be a good one.

Overall, it didn't disappoint. I was hooked from the very beginning--and kept on being hooked--as she described her life from rural Alaska and Oregon to Playboy Mansion to independent lady.

What made this book truly fascinating was the inside scoop of the infamous Playboy Mansion. I think you would be lying to yourself if you didn't at one point in time wonder what it was like on the inside of Hefner's complex (am I right?), and the book details every inch of it. Spoiler alert: it's not pretty. Did you really expect anything else considering that lifestyle?

Madison does an excellent job of chronicling both her life as a "Playboy bunny" and her life as a woman trying to overcome the stigma of being associated with the mansion. At times, I felt as though the writing was a bit superficial, but after spending nearly a decade in a mansion of ridicule and manipulative confinement, can you really blame her?

Not That Kind of Girl

Not That Kind of Girl, by Lena Dunham, 265 pages

Lena Dunham can be a pretty polarizing figure, especially among women I hang out with.  She does a good job at representing what her and her friends are like- it's just that it's incredibly difficult to relate to if you are not from a privileged, upper-class, white NYC household, yourself.  So I started reading this with a great deal of skepticism- how much could we really have in common?  And the answer is- well, not a whole lot; but the more I read it, the more I thought of her as a younger sister who makes bad decisions, and then owns up to them; she also has a strong sense of self and is constantly learning her worth.  And as the reader, I just shook my head in exasperation, but kept reading- because her heart is always in the right place and you can see real growth.  And for the many issues I take with her work, I respect what she's doing. So if you like celeb-memoir type books (think: Mindy Kaling's Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?), this may be worth reading.

Now & Forever

Now & Forever by Susane Colasanti, 258 pages

Sterling completely loves her boyfriend Ethan and she is sure that Ethan loves her just as much.  Ethan’s big dream is to be a big rock star and he’s good enough to do it.  Sterling supports him fully in his dream and luckily his mom is also supportive.  During their senior year, Ethan’s dream starts to come true as his band starts getting promotion and recognition, and he is becoming a huge star with millions of followers.  For Sterling, this is great at first because she loves the attention she gets as Ethan’s girlfriend but as time passes and Ethan gets busier, hey get to spend less and less time together until Sterling isn’t sure how Ethan even feels about her anymore.  This was a nice story that a lot of teens, especially girls will like, that definitely ended with a positive message.

How The Choked: Failures, Flops, And Flaws Of The Awfully Famous

How The Choked: Failures, Flops, And Flaws Of The AwfullyFamous by Georgia Bragg     

200 pages

This book talks about several famous people and the ways that they failed throughout their lifetimes.  Some of them succeeded at some of the things that they attempted but also had some spectacular failures along the way, some succeeded after their deaths, and some of the just failed, but became famous anyway.  For example, Susan B. Anthony, champion of women’s rights, did not succeed in acquiring the right for women to vote during her lifetime, but without her instrumental work. It may have taken much longer than it did. Thomas Alva Edison had many successes during his lifetime but also some monumental failures, not to mention that he wasn’t a very pleasant man. Benedict Arnold was a traitor and a spy to the United States but his plot failed.  These are just a handful of the people discussed in this book that uses a lot of facts and more than a touch of humor.  There are a lot of kids who might enjoy reading it and the book includes a very detailed list of sources that could provide further reading

In The Age Of Love And Chocolate

In The Age Of Love And Chocolate by Gabrielle Zevin      286 pages

Maybe it was because I was sorry to see the series end but when I finished this final book on the trilogy I was left feeling kind of disappointed.  I liked the story all of the way through and I felt like it ended well so I’m not sure what the problem was.  Maybe it was a little predictable or wrapped up too neatly, but that isn’t usually a problem for me.  The story is still all about Anya Ballanchine who is starting a new nightclub that will serve cacao, since it is legal to distribute for medicinal purpose, unlike chocolate, which is not legal at all.  Anya’s business partner, Mr. Delacroix, has cost her a boyfriend, Win, who is Delacroix’s son and doesn’t approve of the partnership.  Anya, in the meantime, is also the guardian of her younger sister, Natty.  Natty has begun acting out, as many teenagers do, and Anya, who is really still a teenager herself, doesn’t know what to do.  Not to mention the fact that her cousin-in-law, Sophie Bitter, who tried to kill her, is still at large.  Anya has a lot on her plate but problems do seem to have a way of working out for Anya, one way or another.  Despite how I felt after finishing, I think that most fans of the series will like this conclusion.  The series is definitely an interesting peek into one possible future of the world.