Kansas.com: Books

Astaire dances across the pages

TOM BEER — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 01:38 CST

"Fred Astaire" by Joseph Epstein (Yale University Press, 224 pages, $22)

A decade ago, journalist Pete Hamill published a book called "Why Sinatra Matters." The same rehabilatory impulse motivates Joseph Epstein's "Fred Astaire," and the same underlying anxiety: Can this archaic cultural figure -- in this case, a skinny, jug-eared fellow who danced very gracefully in old movies -- have meaning for 21st-century audiences, now more accustomed to the flashy routines of "Dancing With the Stars"?

Epstein, the engagingly witty author of "Snobbery" and "Friendship," has not revolutionized our understanding of Astaire, nor unearthed new facts about him. He liberally quotes other critics, including Arlene Croce and John Mueller. But this is a delightful little volume to press into the hands of kids who want a concise introduction to Astaire -- or of old-timers who already revere him.

The author practices what literary critics call close reading, analyzing every detail of his subject: funny face, large hands, reedy voice, natty dress, obvious toupees, public persona, private life, work ethic and, of course, dance moves. He celebrates Astaire's 1930s partnership with Ginger Rogers (charmed on-screen, uneasy off); revisits less successful pairings with Eleanor Powell, Vera-Ellen and others; and casts robust, plebeian Gene Kelly as Astaire's aesthetic foil. He pays tribute to Astaire's underappreciated vocal talents and his too-little-known 1950s Verve recordings.

"Whence derived Fred Astaire's sublimity, his magic?" Epstein asks. It's an imponderable question, really -- but a terrific excuse to contemplate this performer who could deliver pure pleasure on cue.

Positive portrayalsin 'Lennon'

MICHAEL YOUNG — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 01:38 CST

"John Lennon: The Life" by Philip Norman (Ecco, 864 pages, $34.95)

At the end of "John Lennon: The Life," his simultaneously fascinating and troubling biography of the late Beatle, Philip Norman mentions that Yoko Ono, whose patronage opened unimagined doors for research, ultimately refused to endorse the book.

It was, she said, "mean to John."

Perhaps that means it was actually fair.

The visionary Lennon, practically deified after his assassination on the streets of New York in 1980, proved himself over 40 years to be a brilliant songwriter and musician with a profound social conscience, a gentle and loving father, and a ferociously protective friend. And as Norman proves over and over again in this 864-page study, Lennon was crippled emotionally by a tragic childhood, often vicious to those who loved him most, and particularly cruel to his first wife, his first son, his fumbling, seaman father, and his closest friends.

The beauty that is

LISA MCLENDON — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 01:38 CST

mercy

"A Mercy" by Toni Morrison (Knopf, 167 pages, $23.95)

Nobel Prize winner Toni Morrison's spare, haunting new novel takes us back to the late 17th century, a time in the new days of the New World when slavery and servitude were based on class and not race, a time when myriad cultures collided, less to forge a new nation than to make a little money or a new life -- or defend an old one.

In this chaotic world, Morrison strips the cultural mix down to a personal level, following the lives of several people linked by land and fate.

Florens, the young daughter of a black plantation slave, is given away by her owner to settle a debt. Florens' mother is the original choice, but she offers her daughter in her stead, seeing it as a better chance for both her daughter and her infant son to live. It does end up a better life for Florens, but she remains plagued by her mother's decision.

Horror in miniature

JANET MASLIN — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 01:40 CST

STEPHEN KING RETURNS TO THE SHORT STORY

"Just After Sunset: Stories" by Stephen King (Scribner, 367 pages, $28)

Most people think of the roadside rest area as a functional place to stop during a long drive. Not Stephen King. King sees potential nightmares in even the most mundane experiences. And his new collection of short stories mines the rest-stop idea to the max.

Of the 13 stories in "Just After Sunset," one entirely revolves around a bathroom break. One uses a rest area as a crucial turning point in its suspense plot. And one is the retch-worthy tale of a man locked inside a tipped-over, heavily used Portosan.

"I even grossed myself out," King says of that last one in his notes about the book. Quite a feat. His gross-out threshold is a whole lot higher than yours.

Hijuelos turns his attention to young readers

SUSAN CARPENTER — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 01:40 CST

"Dark Dude" by Oscar Hijuelos (Atheneum, 440 pages, $16.99)

Sherman Alexie did it with his National Book Award winner, "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian." Now Pulitzer Prize-winning author Oscar Hijuelos is adding his name to the list of literary heavyweights turning their talents to minority-themed, young-adult fiction.

Like Hijuelos' best-known novel, "The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love" (1990), "Dark Dude" is about a Cuban living in New York City, only the protagonist is second generation and a teenager. He is also uncharacteristically fair-skinned -- a "dark dude." According to the definition that kicks off this book for readers ages 12 and up, that's what "a male of light skin is derisively called by persons of color."

That description most certainly applies to Rico, a 15-year-old Cuban American with blond hair, hazel eyes and freckles. The New York City teen is often jumped by hoods who think he's white and, therefore, has money. But he doesn't. His "Pops" works two jobs to keep the four-person family afloat, and they're still scraping to get by because Pops likes to drink away his paychecks.

Rico dreams of writing comic books, but those hopes are fading by the day. Both his neighborhood and his high school are plagued by violence and drug abuse and lead to Rico's decision to run away.

Novel in letters a quick, fun read

LISA MCLENDON — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 01:40 CST

" 'Tis the Season" by Lorna Landvik (Ballantine, 223 pages, $22)

Gimmicks in novels can be tricky to pull off: They have to be tools, rather than ends in themselves, and they have to be supported by good writing and interesting characters. But the epistolary novel has a long tradition, and in the right hands can be quite engaging. Lorna Landvik's hands are the right kind.

Landvik's latest book is, in a reflection of modern communications, composed mostly of e-mails, although old-fashioned pen-and-paper letters and some gossip columns make up part of the story as well.

The letters bounce back and forth among several characters, but focus on Caroline Dixon, a celebrity heiress who has hit the bottle hard and has reached a turning point in her still-young life.

In the course of making amends, Caro gets back in touch with two people who helped her through the roughest patch of her childhood: her Norwegian nanny, and the owner of the ranch where she was sent to live as her father unsuccessfully battled his illness. Both have fond memories of Caro, and they all decide to reunite for Christmas at the ranch.

'Away' author to visit Wichita

LISA MCLENDON — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 01:37 CST

Amy Bloom's most recent novel, "Away" (Random House, 235 pages, $14 paper), is an immigrant story, a road story, and a story of the power of a mother's love, all packed into a tightly and beautifully written volume.

The novel tells the story of Lillian Leyb, who emigrates from Russia to America after her family is killed in pogroms. She arrives in New York to stay with a cousin and works to build a new life.

But when she gets word that her young daughter may be alive, she sets off to find her -- to Siberia, via Chicago, Seattle and Alaska.

Bloom will be in Wichita Wednesday as part of her tour for the paperback release of "Away."

If you go

Kansans get back to nature

Sun, 09 Nov 2008 01:37 CST

Two new books by Kansas authors turn their attention to nature. One is a look at Kansas lands through photographs, essays and facts about ecology. The other is a comprehensive biography of the father of American environmentalism, John Muir, by a professor at the University of Kansas.

"The Nature of Kansas Lands" edited by Beverley Worster (University Press of Kansas, 75 pages, $34.95)

Sponsored by the Kansas Land Trust, "The Nature of Kansas Lands" is a gorgeous collection of photographs, essays and facts about the varied ecosystems of our fair state.

The book's five sections -- waterways, woodlands, grasslands, farmlands and high plains -- show that there is much more to the ecology of Kansas than may be evident from a trip along the interstate.

Lavish color photographs are accompanied by short essays and briefly listed facts about each ecosystem. The essays, by Stewardship Notes columnist Elizabeth Schultz, are personal reflections on the seasons, the weather and the landscape that constitute an ecological tour of Kansas.

Splat the cat learns lesson about mice

STEVE JOHNSON — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 00:41 CDT

"Splat the Cat" by Rob Scotton (HarperCollins Publishers, ages 3-7, $16.99) is a charming look at the power of believing in yourself.

Splat is worried about his first day at Cat School. He decides he will need a good friend this special day, and puts his pet mouse in his lunchbox. Splat is intrigued by all he is learning until the teacher writes that cats chase mice. Splat asks why, why, why until lunchtime. When his pet mouse gets out of his lunchbox, "the cats do what cats do."

Scotton writes a witty story with engaging conversation. His illustrations are a delightful mix of whimsical and realistic artwork.

The mouse returns to Splat and all is well except that the milk cupboard is jammed. Splat has his mouse crawl inside and open the cupboard. The new lesson after milk time is: Cats don't chase mice.

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The hell of war

GAYLORD DOLD — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 00:41 CDT

DEXTER FILKINS' REPORTING ON AFGHANISTAN AND IRAQ IS PROFOUNDLY MOVING

"The Forever War" by Dexter Filkins (Alfred A. Knopf, 384 pages, $25)

Dexter Filkins of the New York Times first saw war in Afghanistan during the time of the Taliban. Even before that, he'd been a reporter covering the struggle of warlords in that same country for control of opium poppies, the heroin trade, and weapons smuggling, a struggle that was the bitter broth of a failed Soviet adventure.

Later, when Iraq exploded into war, Filkins went there too, part of a huge Times contingent that lived outside the Green Zone and reported, in its own way, on a war unlike any other America had fought.

Filkins was rarely "imbedded," though he did often travel with Marines, observing their heroics, their peculiar rituals, their deaths. Instead, Filkins scrambled around Baghdad and out into the insanely dangerous countryside to encounter directly an Iraq that other, less foolhardy, journalists rarely saw.

Surveying the rich, conflicted legacy of Martin Heidegger

ARLICE DAVENPORT — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 01:41 CDT

"Heidegger: A (Very) Critical Introduction" by S.J. McGrath (Eerdmans, 131 pages, $16)

He was a failed seminarian and a Nazi sympathizer. He called his readers to authenticity by writing about anxiety and guilt.

He inspired some of continental Europe's greatest thinkers, and frustrated their counterparts in England and America.

Love him or hate him, Martin Heidegger ranks as one of the most important philosophers of the 20th century.

He has earned his place in the Western canon because he "single-handedly resurrected the study of ontology" (or Being), according to S.J. McGrath in his compact introduction to Heidegger's life and thought.

Rice memoir shows belief exacts a price

NICK OWCHAR — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 01:39 CDT

"Called Out of Darkness: A Spiritual Confession" by Anne Rice (Alfred A. Knopf, 246 pages, $24)

Ask almost anyone to name a female author who has a successful string of novels about vampires, and, chances are, he or she will quickly say Stephenie Meyer, whose "Twilight" series is sweeping across best-seller lists.

Five years ago, however, the first answer would have been Anne Rice, whose "Interview With the Vampire" and the rest of her "Vampire Chronicles" followed the lives (is that the right term for the undead?) of Lestat, Louis, Armand & Co.

All of this, however, is well behind her. Her subject now is the life of Jesus, which she has begun writing in installments.

As Rice explains in her lovely memoir, "Called Out of Darkness: A Spiritual Confession," the decision to leave behind her supernatural dramatis personae wasn't that she thought they were beneath her newfound faith. She's not embarrassed by her fanged crew. Hardly. Lestat, in fact, "had been my dark search engine for twenty-seven years," she writes.

Exile at home

GORDON HOUSER — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 01:39 CDT

A PRODIGAL SON RETURNS IN MARILYNNE ROBINSON'S 'HOME'

"Home" by Marilynne Robinson (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 325 pages, $25)

After more than 20 years between her first and second novels, Marilynne Robinson offers her third novel a mere four years after her Pulitzer Prize-winning "Gilead." "Home" is set at the same time, 1956, and in the same town, Gilead, Iowa, as the previous book, but it is a companion, not a sequel. And it is almost as good.

"Gilead" was an epistolary novel, with the Rev. John Ames as its narrator. "Home" centers on Ames' close friend and fellow preacher, the Rev. Robert Boughton, but it is told mostly through the eyes of Glory, Robert's youngest daughter, who cares for her father at their home as he is dying.

The novel's tension arises from the visit of Jack Boughton, Robert's wayward son and Glory's older brother. Jack, who played a key peripheral role in "Gilead," is the prodigal son who returns home after 20 years.