The Oregon Book Report - Book News from Oregon

Lady WWII pilot shares her story

Review of “My Piece of the Sky” by Oregonian, Anna Louise Flynn Monkiewicz, a WWII aviator.

Review by Naomi Inman,

Anna Louise Flyyn Monkiewicz grew up outside of Boston, MA in the smaller town of Natick, MA. She had two sisters and a brother. Anna remembers the day she first wanted to fly. She was 8 years old and Charles Lindbergh had just made his historic flight.

“I decided way back then that I wanted to fly,” she remembers. “I told my family that I wanted to fly, and they all thought I was a little crazy.” Mom and Pop answered, “You’re not old enough and you’re not rich enough.”

Oregon’s unique charm of driftwood forts

BOOK REVIEW: “Driftwood Forts of the Oregon Coast” by author James Herman
Review by By Patrick Newson

(Watch out!) The rain washes timber downstream, through the forests and seaward to churn and polish construction material for James Herman’s new book, Driftwood Forts of the Oregon Coast. Within, beach detritus, as a subject and medium, exists as a playfully utilitarian opportunity to showcase years of collective architecture known as forts—those temporary structures people keep building, rebuilding and sharing. Each fort is a unique amalgam of “found” material and intention. But there are rules (guidelines, at least for contests): use what you have; fasten it together naturally; tide and time must have touched the material; work together: all elements Herman has employed not only in the construction of a master ten-year (tenure) fort, but also in the composition of his book.

Meet the mind-blowing poet

By Michal Ann McArthur, Bend
Author of Choking on a Camel
Her blog

Book Review: “Delights & Shadows,” a collection of poetry by Ted Kooser

I had never heard of Ted Kooser, but he intrigued me one night as I listened to him read his poetry on National Public Radio. His poems were gritty, homespun, down-to-earth. I liked that. I only found out later that he was Poet Laureate of the United States from 2004-2006 and won the Pulitzer Prize in 2005 for “Delights and Shadows.” Not bad for a man who spent much of his adult life working as a life insurance executive.

I like a poet who doesn’t mince around among unicorns and daffodils. I want to read lines that are arresting, thought-provoking, even mind-blowing, that skewer me with sharp insight or leave me breathless with wonder. When I read a poem, I want feel as though a film over my eyes has been removed and for the first time, I can SEE. Kooser’s poems do that for me.

Review of Killing Jesus

Michelle Barnhart reviews “Killing Jesus” by authors Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard.

How in the world did a working class kid from a mediocre town in an obscure corner of the Roman empire end up getting himself executed for treason? In this book, Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard look at the historical setting into which Jesus was born, as well as the religious and political climate of the day, and how those aspects played into Jesus’ life and death.

Although the authors are both Catholic, they aren’t trying to prove whether or not Jesus was the promised Messiah; instead they focus on the historical record of his life. And they don’t just tell what happened; they also explain why it happened, how it took place, and often the deeper significance of the event.

Mormon girl meets Apache boy in SW love novel

Dan Rehwalt reviews “Fish in a Bird’s Nest” By author F. Elizabeth Hauser
Lizzard Press 2014

A Mormon girl of fifteen and an Apache boy of nineteen were less than desirable marriage partners in the early 1900′s, especially in the Gila Valley of Southeastern Arizona. F. Elizabeth Hauser weaves a tale that confronts issues existing to this day, and does it with superior skill.

Emmaline Cluff was the daughter of James and Elizabeth, Mormon pioneers to the Gila Valley, who farmed hay and cotton. Ransom Henry was the son of William and Frances, Apache farm laborers, who were employees of the Cluffs since the time Ransom was three. Cluffs and Henrys lived as neighbors and the two children were together every day.

“Come Fly With Us” takes you on wild retro spin

“Come Fly with Us” Reviewed by Mary Jane Tenerelli,
Poet, legal writer and Mom
AilemoBooks

This beautiful book is full of gorgeous historical photos and fun and informative text. This is the story of the flight attendant, from her very beginnings to the present, and what a fascinating story it is as told here. I didn’t realize that the first flight attendants were registered nurses…and that in the 1960s, some wore paper dresses that male business passengers used to burn with their cigarettes or splash with cocktails by way of flirting with them! Others did an airborne striptease for the passengers! The history is interesting, touching and often funny.

I really loved the glamour of the early years of flying in Come Fly With Us. There’s a photograph of a woman in a lace nightie being served breakfast in bed in the 1930s! Even in the 1970s, American Airlines had a piano bar in coach and everyone looks really happy enjoying cocktails and singing around the piano. And for the flight attendants it was pretty glamorous too because they traveled around the world, shopping for leather goods in Italy, dining in the best restaurants in London or Paris, seeing the sights in New York one day and frolicking in the surf off some exotic South Pacific island the next day.

A fast & funny read on the Middle Ages

A book review of “The Middle Ages” By author Morris Bishop

I’m a fan of history and have generally been interested in most time periods—with the exception of the Middle Ages. The era’s very title implies a period of time between more important periods of time. Ancient history of Greece and Rome fascinates me. Religious and political history of the last few hundred years is critical to understanding where we are today. But the Middle Ages, also referred to as the Dark Ages, has always seemed a bit of a historical no-man’s land, and I’ve never been sure where to begin. Fortunately, I was recently given a copy of Morris Bishop’s book, “The Middle Ages”.

Bishop, now deceased, was a professor at Cornell University and one of the world’s preeminent medieval historians and authors during his lifetime.

Three Spring books to love

By Erika Weisensee, booklover
Milwaukie writing mom,

“If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.” -Cicero

This quote combines two of my favorite things, reading and being outside in my garden. In fact, I love to read outside. I have written before in this column about my love of good books and the fulfillment I get from being part of two book clubs. Good books have the power to transport one to another time and place, to inspire, to challenge and change minds. While I read plenty of book reviews, the best book recommendations always come by word of mouth. Here are some books people are buzzing about:

“The Help” by Kathryn Stockett
A debut novel, “The Help” is set in Mississippi in 1962. Stockett, who grew up in Jackson, Miss., creates a work of historical fiction that reveals the lives of black women—”The Help”—who were hired to care for and nurture white children. Though tackling serious themes, this book is winning praise for its storytelling, and for the inspiring, even humorous, tone of this new author.

Behind Astoria is some dramatic history

Astoria; John Jacob Astor and Thomas Jefferson’s Lost Pacific Empire: A Story of Wealth, Ambition, and Survival by Peter Stark
Reviewed by by Michelle Barnhart

When I was little, my grandparents occasionally took me to visit the Astor Column in Astoria. I didn’t pay much attention to the faded murals ringing the tower; I was too busy climbing up and down the circular iron staircase inside. I’ve been there occasionally as an adult, but not since my family was kicked out of the park a few years ago following an unfortunate incident involving a young child, a shoe, and a park attendant with a very small sense of humor.

In his book Astoria, Peter Stark tells the story behind the founding of the Astoria settlement. The key to John Jacob Astor’s vision of a global trading empire was an outpost on the Pacific coast, and he poured men and a substantial fortune into the venture. Although Astor was a detailed planner and spared no expense, he failed to take human frailty, an unexpected war, and sheer bad luck into account.