Deadly Sisterhood - Ladies of the Renaissance

Have I been in a Renaissance mode lately? Yep. (Just ask me about the different Italian city/states.) While reading Blood and Beauty, I realized that I did not have enough background on who was who during that turbulent time period in Italy.

So when wandering the shelves of my local library I found this title, The Deadly Sisterhood: A Story of Women, Power, and Intrigue in the Italian Renaissance, 1427-1527 by Leonie Frieda. This was a perfect non-fiction match for the Borgia book. Not only does Frieda write about Lucrezia, she writes about her sister-in-laws and the other ladies that were affected by Borgia battles.

And don't let the title fool you, Frieda focuses on the princesses - but their lives are invariably attached and intertwined with the men in their families. She tries to let the women tell their own tales through their letters and writings. And what a cast of characters: Isabella of Este, her sister/rival Beatrice, Caterina Sforza (with her three marriages,) and the women of the House of Medici. Oh yes, and  Lucrezia too!

We learn about the family battles, the gossip, the alliances, the intermarriage, (the fights for choosing a Pope) and how many of these wealthy women influenced the culture around them by sponsoring artists or writers and in Isabella's case - becoming a shrewd art collector. And supporting their husbands, children, and city states along the way.

While to some this may seem a dry history topic, I found Frieda's book to be well written and the stories are fascinating. Truth is often crazier than fiction, and these people lived their lives to the fullest.(Keeping track of the affairs alone can be difficult!)  And since they are all connected via marriage or alliance, the family trees at the beginning of the book were very helpful. I found myself eager to read what happened next in these family sagas. Who needs People magazine when you have the Houses of Medici, Borgia, Sforza, della Rovere, Gonzaga, Aragona and Este? A fun frothy read.

Blood and Beauty

I'm not one to read huge novels lately - I'm still in grad school for goodness sake - but I guess I have made an exception for Sarah Dunant's Blood and Beauty.

Can we say it in one word? Borgia. Yep, that infamous family. Dunant's novel starts up the tale just as Alexander VI takes up his papal throne in 1492 and proceeds to wine, dine and bribe the great houses of the Italian states. And on the chess board is his teenage daughter Lucrezia.  Which family will be the most advantageous to marry into? And what about his son Cesare? Some how becoming a powerful cardinal is not going to be enough for the ambitious and lethal young man.

Dunant takes the reader for a journey with glimpse of the chaos and glamour that was the Italian Renaissance. It really was a time of great contrasts. Wondrous paintings by artists on the Vatican's walls vs. political assignations on the dark side streets of Rome. Great piety shown by their holy men vs. backroom power deals. Powerful Italian city states vs. a  backwater Rome that needs to be rebuilt.  Hmm, how modern it all seems...

The author makes us take another look at the 'evil' Borgias - were they the worst people as the rumors suggest? Or were they merely surviving the best they could in such an environment? This book lets you decide for yourself as Dunant leads the reader through the family's tale. There are characters to love and hate, and whether you find yourself feeling for Lucrezia who seems to bring death where ever she goes, or seeing her as a product of her position and time - that is for the reader to decide. Alexander VI is the proud papa who loves his children and wants them to have the best. Cesare is a genius at seeing political patterns and does not let being in holy orders stop him.  But I would not want him next to me at any dinner party.

Dunant lets the tale flow and brings us this fictionalized version of a true story that is stranger than fiction. You can't make some of the things they did up. Because they did them! A great saga of a controversial family during tumultuous times. Highly recommended for lovers of  long books of historical fiction.

The Astronaut Wives Club: The Story of the Ladies Behind the Spacemen.

I'm not sure what it is about July, but I always think July = the Moon Landing. It was on July 20, 1969 to be precise.  Such an adventurous time! Was Neil Armstrong going to disappear in Moon dust? Would they be able to come back to earth? These were questions that were debated before and during the mission.

But what if that spaceman was your husband or Dad and you were waiting for them to come home? Lily Koppel's book The Astronaut Wives Club tells the other side of the story - from the wives' perspective. They too, had a part to play in the space race. They got to be involved in a lot of the PR, whether they wanted to or not. They had to present the perfect home and family life to LIFE magazine writers and photographers even if that was fiction.

Based on extensive interviews with the wives and a vast amount of research, Koppel presents an entertaining and thought provoking picture of these women who went from being military wives on desolate air bases to having tea with Jackie Kennedy in the White House. And all of this was taking place during the turbulent 1960's and 70's.  

Because the wives were living under NASA's shadow and living in 'Togetherville,'  life felt very different when their husbands got out of the space program. Finding out what happened to the couples and their families afterwards is another fascinating part of the story.

Definitively an inspiring story of the women who helped make history and the space race happen - even if it was mostly behind the scenes. I have read many books on the space program, and this one will be added to that shelf. I highly recommend it. 

An advanced reading copy of this title was received (well, grabbed really cause I was looking forward to this title) at the American Libraries Association (ALA) conference from the publisher.

The Shakespeare Thefts : In Search of the First Folios

I'm a bit of a Shakespeare geek really, and so when I saw this title I had to add it to my 'to read' list.  The Shakespeare Thefts: In Search of the First Folios by Eric Rasmussen is a great book on the book collectors of the first editions of Shakespeare's plays.

Thefts - we got them in spades, destroying folios - it is in here, very strange book collectors - ditto! Rasmussen is a Shakespeare scholar and researcher who led a team of First Folio hunters who have spent years locating and examining surviving copies. And along the way they have acquired stories about the various copies, and which copies have disappeared.

I think one of my favorite stories was the tale of the extreme book collector, Sir Thomas Phillips . He did not like his daughter's fiance who was a scholar but also rumored to be a book thief (probably true) and a scrapbooker who destroyed several rare books. Because his daughter would inherit his collection if it stayed on his estate - he moved it. The transferring of his books to their new home - took two years because he had so many. And later it was noted that his Folio was missing. (See chapter nine.)

This title is written very well and moves quickly (it is not that big a book.) Rasmussen keeps the language clear for the everyday reader, but bibliophiles will enjoy it too. And just incase you don't think that you could ever find a First Folio in your closet - there is a story about that too.

After being a bit giddy (um, book geek) at seeing some of the Shakespheare Folios at the British Library and the Folger Shakespeare Library, I loved how this book complemented those past visits. A great read.

Colonial Foodies

The Founding Foodies: How Washington, Jefferson, and Franklin Revolutionized American Cuisine By Dave DeWitt


This is a great and concise title on how our founding fathers really were the first foodies in the land. Jefferson and Washington were plantation owners and experimented with crops and vegetables in their particular states. Franklin spent time in France as the U.S. ambassador and definitely enjoyed himself while there! He also was a early supporter of corn. Jefferson used his time in France to discover new plants and vegetables and had some of them brought back to Monticello.

This book goes into detail about food (and drink) during colonial times and how the tavern really helped the growth of the democracy. There is also a lengthy section with recreated recipes. There is a very detailed appendix with historic colonial foodie sites to visit. And perhaps best of all - an extremely detailed bibliography for more books both on Washington, Jefferson and Franklin, but food and living during colonial times. A fun read.

Unfamiliar Fishes

Sarah Vowell's book Unfamiliar Fishes has left me with a mixture of sadness, excitement, and questions. Questions about how the United States and its government has left its manifest destiny all over the globe. Excitement, because  - well - I really wanted to visit Hawaii before, but now I really want to go. And sadness, because commerce and greed was the reason that we overthrew the Queen of Hawaii.

This book is about Hawaii, its history and natives, and how the United States took it over. And it is told in Vowell's quirky and wry style.  She goes into depth about the missionaries who came to this wild and unknown land from cold New England. They were not prepared too well for the voyage or for what they would find. But they managed to bring education and helped create a written language for the Hawaiian people. But island life was interrupted by commerce, farming and taking as much from the islands as the newcomers could get.

Vowell is what I would call a uncomfortable historian. (Howard Zinn does the same thing.) She tells you what happened to whom and when. She gives you details from different viewpoints. But what she shows you is that history is messy. Heroes are human. People make bad choices. And it can make the reader uncomfortable in their easy chair.

And perhaps that is the point. We are to question why we are choosing this route; is it really better policy? And for whom? These are things that Americans have forgotten about.These are questions that their ancestors and founding fathers raised and fought about. Today we seem to argue more about television reality shows.

Vowell gives us questions to ponder. And the more we know about history, the better we are to deal with the present. At least I hope so. A very good read.

Here We Go Again: My Life in Television - Betty White Is So Cool!

I have always thought that Betty White was cool. She reminds me of a favorite aunt of mine with her humor and laughter. So maybe that is why I responded so well when I started listening to her audiobook of  Here We Go Again: My Life in Television. And the fact that she reads it doesn't hurt either!

Betty White has been in television since 1949! I had no idea she was such a pioneer. I must admit my TV memories of her are of her playing Sue Ann Nivens on the Mary Tyler Moore show in the 70's. But in this memoir you find out about her early days of broadcasting on a daily show for over 6 hours a day, as well as countless variations of the Betty White Show, her regular spots on the Tonight Show with Jack Paar, and her many guest spots on game shows, and talk shows. And then there is MTM and the Golden Girls.

I think anyone who is interested in the history of the television industry would be interested to check out her story. The story is told with good humor (hello! It's Betty White!) But not everything is rosy - she tells the story behind the scenes as well.

My only problem with this audiobook is that it is abridged! (And it does not say it on the container.) I wanted more! Have a listen and laugh. A fun read.

97 Orchard : An Edible History

97 Orchard: An Edible History of Five Immigrant Families in One New York Tenement by Jane Ziegelman has gotten some very nice reviews and I can see why - it is a great book! Ziegelman takes five families of immigrants (Germans, Irish, Italians and Eastern European Jews) and looks at their food culture that they brought with them and how it changes and adapts to American life.

It is fascinating to take a look back at how things used to be done and what conditions that they had to live through. (How brave our ancestors were to make their way here!) It also is interesting to see what impact they had on the American palate and how they influenced "American" cuisine.

Some interesting points of interest -

- Ireland had a well balanced diet but because of the land laws changing - smaller plots, and their growing dependency on potatoes, by the time they arrived in America during the famine, they really did not have a national cuisine anymore. They could assimilate their food culture much faster into the land of abundance.

- Ellis Island eventually had a kosher kitchen and dinning to feed the newly arrived Jews but not til around 1914.

- Schmaltz was originally was not derived from chicken but from geese. As chicken breeding improved - and they were cheaper - chicken fat took the place of geese fat.

- It is interesting to see how far and fast that German food was assimilated into the New York culture of the time.

Ziegelman takes each family's story and tries to tell it through the limited documents that are available. But she uses their tales and expands them to their neighborhood of the time (which changes with the various waves of immigration) and their cooking traditions of the time. A great book for history lovers, and foodies alike. A very good read.

Seven Ages of Paris

If you decide that you have forgotten anything you have learned about French history, or if you have decided that you are woefully ignorant of the French in general, you need to take a look at Alistair Horne's book Seven Ages of Paris.

In a fairly concise and enlivening book, Horne takes us on a whirlwind journey through the ages of Parisian life. This is definitely his view on things. But his view is a very good one - and it helps the ignorant like, yours truly, get a handle on the magnificent city that is Paris. From 358 AD to the rise of Mitterand, he gives us the politics, the people, architecture and artists that have given rise to the current "City of Lights." And he manages to interconnect them all as he goes along.

He has a bit of a "chatty" style for a historian, but he reminds you of the friend that is really going to tell you the highlights of what you need to know and nevermind the rest. I was amazed that his writing drew me in and kept me reading in the great saga that is PARIS! I was a bit disappointed by the lack of information about the French Revolution - a bit sketchy there - but the discussion of the aftermath, kept me from protesting. And besides he did tell you he was going to do the history - his way. An excellent book to look at the history of an exciting city. Viva la France!

The Wordy Shipmates

Yes, Sarah Vowell has done it again! She has a taken a tiny section of American history and made it her own. The Wordy Shipmates is her latest micro-history. This book is about the early settlers of Massachusetts. Nope - not those pilgrims with a capital "P". This is about that other group - those future Bostonians, the Massachusetts Bay Colony and their leader John Winthrop. They want to build "a city upon a hill" but their way. And if you do not agree - then they banish you. And thus Rhode Island is born!

There are some problems with this book. It is hard to be quirky about major players in history, when what writings that are available seem to suggest that some of the founding fathers had no sense of humor at all. And most of us modern folk would call them cranks. But different times for different men, and Vowell tries to make them alive for us, with all their sins and faults. While her admiration for their struggles and the principles that they passed on to us future Americans, is evident, it is hard for the reader to get excited by the early 17th century prose.

Winthrop and his group survived, passed on their beliefs, created Harvard, started Indian wars, and helped create a uniquely American culture. And Vowell ties it all together for you. This book is a must for a Sarah Vowell fan, or a early American history buff.

Serve the People: A Stir-Fried Journey Through China

Jen Lin-Liu is an American journalist and food writer living in Beijing, China. She decides to hone up on her cooking skills by taking Chinese cooking classes in a state run cooking school. Her adventures have lead to the book, Serve the People: A Stir-Fried Journey Through China.

So is this book about Chinese cooking? Yes - but it is so much more. It is also a study of China today and where it is headed. It is about the ambition of it's people and where they have been. Who knew that one of the most important people that she meets is the secretary and caretaker of the school? This "non" teacher becomes Jen's guide to the China of yesteryear as well as her traditionalist cooking advisor and friend. As Jen discovers and learns about different regional cuisines, she travels and cooks in different areas and restaurants. Everything from your local small lunchtime noodle shop to the high class international restaurants of Shanghai.

A good book for Chinese food fans, history fans, and those who are trying to get a grasp on the Chinese culture today. After reading this, one has a better understanding of how the latest food scares out of China can happen and why they will probably continue. An excellent read.

The Fortune Cookie Chronicles: Adventures in the World Of Chinese Food

The Fortune Cookie Chronicles: Adventures in the World Of Chinese Food by Jennifer 8. Lee is a whirlwind trip into Chinese American cuisine. The fortune cookie is an American made phenomena, but does it have an ancestry in the food culture it helped popularize? That is the start of Lee's quest and she takes the reader all over the world in search of answers.

As an American -born Chinese, she takes us in the history of the Chinese food in America and elsewhere. Chinese food is served in all seven continents - including Antarctica. (And she takes us to some of the most well known of the overseas restaurants. The irony is that most of them have"American style" food!) It is a story of Chinese immigration and adaptation.

Just who first made chop seuy anyway - and just who is this General Tso and his chicken? (This dish really sounds like just a variation of sesame chicken to me!) And what happens when hundreds of people use the same numbers from their fortune cookie to play the lottery? Read and find out.

Lee's book is well written and thoughtful. She provides us with a glimpse of the Chinese American experience. I'm just glad she let us all come along for the ride. A must read for anyone who loves their local Chinese takeout. Well written and a lot of fun. And yes, it will make you hungry.

The Boys of Winter

The Boys of Winter: The Untold Story of a Coach, a Dream, and the 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team by Wayne Coffey is a book about a hockey game. But it was a game, that represented more than just a group of amateur young Americans taking the ice. It became a symbol of the country's daring do in a rather bleak point of our history. Coffey does some excellent research and interviews and he takes us along for the ride.

If you are an fan of the Olympics, you will enjoy this book. If you remember the game or the era - you will enjoy it even more. Coffey does a period by period breakdown of the game and brings in the backgrounds of all the players, coaches, and officials in the book. He even manages to make the former Soviet players human. He manages to bring vibrancy and life to an event that is over 25 years old. And he does so with a journalist's eye and perspective, so that the book is not just a puff piece. It made me eager to watch the game (not the glamorized movie version) all over again. A very good read.

Assassination Vacation

I got the chance to see Sarah Vowell give a lecture of her work. Meeting a favorite author in person usually makes one feel like a bit of a geek. Standing in a autographing line makes one race, to think up something pithy and witty to say to the author in the 2 minutes you may get, to converse with her. Then nerves take over - you give her your name and you say something about how you love her work and you just went to the Lincoln Museum in Springfield, yadda, yadda, yadda... And when the moment is over and you move on- you realize you really can't remember if you came off like a knowledgable citizen of the world or as a provincial rube. Sigh. But you percieve that this author is a bit of a geek herself in some ways - at least that is how you feel from reading her work - so in the end, you feel she may understand. We, history geeks have to stick together.

Have you been always wanting to take a relaxing tour of presidential assassination sites? Sure ya do. Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation does just that. And while entertaining us with her travels via the Lincoln, Garfield and McKinley assassination sites, she makes pithy statements and parallels about the modern presidency.

The book focuses mostly on the Lincoln assassination - but the others were all interconnected. Vowell points out that Robert Todd Lincoln was there for all of them. She refers to him as Jinxy McDeath. Always popping up near the appointed assignation time. Talk about being cursed. She also goes into great detail about the lives of those involved, so this book is definitely not just history lite.

With humor and irony, Vowell leads us on the path of discovery. We see how these men's lives affected their times and the policies that the United States still has today. And how the dedication of local historians and small museums keeps this history alive and that the truth truly can be weirder than fiction. And she makes the history geeks want to hitchhike along for the ride. An excellent read.

If you get a chance - try and listen to a bit of the book on audio. Vowell is a commentator on NPR's This American Life, and this shows in the audio book version. Can't wait until her next book - it is supposed to be on the Pilgrims.

It Is Gruesome, Morbid and Macabre - But a Real Good Read

Do you have the right stuff to read about something gruesome? Have you read true crime and murder mysteries? Have friends claimed you are a bit morbid in your tastes? Then I have the book for you - Necropolis: London and It's Dead by Catharine Arnold.

There is one certainty for most of us - death. And Arnold takes us on a tour of the death rituals and burial grounds of one of the world's most populous cities - London. She takes us from the pagans to modern day, with many side trips along the way.

Some interesting facts:

1) The Romans feared their dead and buried their deceased outside of the town limits. They are the first ones to wear black for mourning "as black garments were thought to confer invisibility upon the bereaved, protecting them from vengeful spirits."

2) "The custom of burying within the church derived from the concept of martyrdom. Christians revered those who had died for their faith, turning their tombs into shrines. The faithful clamoured to be buried alongside the martyrs, as close as possible to the venerable remains..."

3) During the Restoration when there was plague - they ran out of burial grounds, so open pits had to be made - a couple near the Houses of Parliament.

4) During Victorian times, the funeral procession and extravaganza was at its peak. There were even whole warehouses "devoted to the sale of mourning costumes and all the paraphernalia necessary for the funeral."

So do you think you will have the stomach for this? Try it. You might get weird looks from people on the train, but it is an excellent read. Not for the faint of heart.

One Drop

Anatole Broyard - a New York Times book critic- was dying of cancer. He told his children his secret. He was black. He had been "passing" for white for decades. How do you handle this kind of family secret? Does it destroy you? Do you put the information away in the recesses of you mind - never to bring it out again? Or do you explore your family's background and your father's decision? In the book, One Drop: My Father's Hidden Life - A Story of Race and Family Secrets, Bliss Broyard, Anatole's daughter, starts looking at her father's Creole origins in New Orleans.

This is a book about discovery. Bliss discovers more about her father and herself in the process of her search for answers. She delves deeply into the history of Creoles in New Orleans and how their story and lives changed throughout the centuries. And she reveals how New Orleans and its culture was a very unique place in America before the Civil War.

Although it may be a bit slow in places, the story of the Creoles of New Orleans is fascinating. And this book makes you think about the question of race and what would you do if faced with the same situation : to pass or not? A good read.

All the President's Men - with Friends Like These...

I have been a bit busy lately and have fallen behind in my posting, but not in my reading. And I had to read this title for a current events genre study. Yeah, it is not a "current event" but the ramifications of this political era still resonate throughout our political life.

All the President's Men by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward could be called one of the first political "instant" books. These books are written during or right after a political event. They started the in-depth investigation into the break-ins at the Watergate building, and proceed to bring the rest of the media and in some circles, the country, with them. It really is a great study of investigative journalism that still has meaning today. The question, for me is - would they have been able to publish this information in the Washington Post today? Would they have been forced to put this in a blog? What would be different if they had today's technology? Half the book is devoted to finding out who are the players and how they are connected - would this have been faster or not? Consider the current administrations' block on information flow - how hard would it be now?

As they take you through the story, one of the most interesting things to me is the loss of political innocence. The people who finally cooperate with Bernstein and Woodward - really love their country and the presidential office and they can not believe the lies and liars that are surrounding Nixon. You can tell these people got involved in public service because they believed that they were helping their country. And that they were let down, and in some cases, betrayed by a paranoid president.

Whether you are a Nixon fan or not, (some of us did not have well formed political views at that time, and wished all those talking men behind the curtained tables would stop blocking our summer television programs!), this is a great study of how power corrupts and how the American public gained their cynicism for their political leaders. It is greatly detailed book - I admit I needed a timeline cheat sheet to keep everything straight - but it reads like a thriller as the authors try to uncover the truth. A great read.

United States of Arugula: How We Became A Gourmet Nation

The United States of Arugula: How We Became a Gourmet Nation by David Kamp is the entertaining study of how the American palate has grown since the start of the last century. He uses James Beard, Julia Child, and Craig Claiborne as his starting points. The book revolves around what happened before they were on the scene and then what happened during their "foodie" reign and then aftermath of their influence on how America eats.

It is fascinating to see how much Kamp manages to fit in his book. Everything from the East Coast restaurant scene, to the latest cookbook craze to the trickle down effect of gourmet food for the masses. He touches on the rise of French restaurant cooking in the U.S., to the Alice Waters/California effect, then to other international cuisines, and then the "Chef as a rock star" - thanks to the rise in food media coverage including the Food Network.

Even if you are not a true "foodie" (- would love it but can afford it!) this will take you on a study of the rise of your favorite cuisines and the wackiness of food trends. Kamp writes very well and this history of what and why we eat, is a whirlwind read from start to finish. Excellent!

1776 - a Microhistory

Did you want a taste of what the War of Independence was like? A sampling as it were? Try David McCullough's most recent title 1776. He focuses on one year at the beginning of the war and leaves you yearning for more.

McCullough is a great writer for finding great source materials, and the letters from George Washington, Nathan Greene and Henry Knox and others do not disappoint. He lets you know these great men and their mistakes, and it allows you to realize that they weren't the demi-gods that some portray them. It is somehow reassuring that in the midst of the struggle - Washington is sending letters to his estate manager about remodeling his house. It sounded as if George would have loved Home & Garden television!

If you grow up in the United States you think you already know the ending of this story and in some ways maybe you do, but McCullough shows you what a narrow victory it sometimes was. Reading of the struggle of the soldiers on the ground reminds you of the dedication they had, to be committing treason against the crown. It sounded a lot easier in your high school text book.

McCullough writes with eloquence and if he's done his job - makes you wonder more about the people and the rest of the war. Excellent read.

A History of the World in 6 Glasses

A History of the World in 6 Glasses is a great book by Tom Standage. Who realized that beverages were so important? Beer, wine, distilled spirits, coffee, tea and Coca-Cola are what Standage focuses on and he brings us the history of the drink’s prime era.

Some fun facts:

Beer was drunk by everyone because it was not as poisonous as the water was. And it used to be drunk with straws so that the drinkers would not drink the floating grains.

Greeks and Romans drank wine that was mixed with water.

Coffee houses were promoted as the new intellectual hangout of their era - in the 1700s!

The East India Company practically started a war in China so that they could get more tea imports.

Coca-Cola started as a medicine and was created by a patent medicine chemist.

With this book, beverages join the group of goods that the historical and modern world has bartered for and fought for. The irony is, he says, the next struggle will be for access for the most basic drink of all - water. Something to look forward to. Hmmm.

An entertaining and informative read. You don't have to be a history junkie to enjoy this.