Will Storr vs. the Supernatural

by Will Storr

So first off I should admit that yes, I do believe that not everything can be explained by science and things like demons and ghosts really do exist.  That said, I don’t think ghosts are the souls of dead people, and I also believe that at least 90% of all supernatural phenomena reported is a huge crock of bull. 

Journalist Will Storr was far more skeptical than I when he met demonologist Lou Gentile.  He arranged to interview the man for Loaded magazine because he found the American a little eccentric, and ‘American eccentrics are great. They’re more sincere, unabashed and convinced in their madness than any other eccentrics in the world.”  (Thanks, Will.)  But after a frightening visit with a demon-possessed woman, Storr is shaken and unable to rationally explain the strange things he sees and hears. It bothers him, and after a few months he decides to more fully investigate the world of supernatural, and try to find the truth – if there is any – behind the myths and folklore.

Storr is a very funny writer, and he captures the essentials of a person’s appearance and mannerisms in a few short sentences, so you can easily form a mental image of the ‘characters’ he encounters.  Some of the people are clearly crying out for attention and faking their ‘special’ powers, but the majority is sincerely convinced that they speak the truth when they describe their experiences.  Storr treats the people respectfully, no matter how ‘off’ they seem to be.  His quest leads him to amateur ghost hunters and psychics, but also to men of a more distinguished caliber, like Maurice Grosse, investigator of the Enfield poltergeist, and the Chief Exorcist of the Catholic Church.

I’d hate to spoil the ending by revealing Storr’s ultimate conclusions about the potential of an afterlife, but I felt he did a really thorough job attacking the subject.  His interviews with a TV psychic or the founder of a UK-based ghost hunting group is balanced by research on quantum physics and interviews with psychologists.  Will Storr vs. the Supernatural has a great title, it’s entertaining, it’s informative, and it’s a really fun book whether you believe in spooks or not.

To read more about Will Storr vs. the Supernatural, buy it or add it to your wishlist click here.

The Emperors of Chocolate: Inside the Secret World of Hershey and Mars

by Joel Glenn Brenner

I bought The Emperors of Chocolate because my accounting teacher offered extra credit to any student that read it and wrote up a paper comparing and contrasting the business practices described in the book.  I figured it would probably be pretty dull, but hey, chocolate’s cool so it couldn’t be that bad, right?  I certainly didn’t expect this book to become one of the most interesting and entertaining reads of the year.

In the United States, the candy market is dominated by two companies: Mars Incorporated and The Hershey Company.  You know Hershey as the maker of Kisses, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and Kit Kat Bars.  Mars pops out M&Ms, Twix, Snickers and Milky Way bars.  In 1999, when this book was written, their combined products dominated 75% of the candy rack.  Mars is privately owned, and the Mars family puts great priority on protecting their privacy.  With their top rival keeping mum on nearly everything, Hershey has also become intensely secretive, even though it’s a publically owned company.  Reporter Joel Glenn Brenner spent over ten years on this book, interviewing former employees, combing through Hershey’s archives, and scoring an exclusive interview with elusive members of the Mars family.

It’s a fascinating read.  Brenner studies these two chocolate giants and their effect on all fronts, covering their history, marketing, economic impact, social goals, and their products.  The book is as much about the chocolates and sweets as the people behind them. It was almost scary to learn just how big Mars is; in addition to the candy line, they also own Uncle Ben’s Rice and Pedigree Petfoods.   Likewise, I had known that Hershey, Pennsylvania was where the Hershey factory was located, but I didn’t know that Milton Hershey had also founded and funded a school that provided board and education for disadvantaged youth which is still in operation today.  That was pretty cool to learn. 

Brenner does an excellent job peeling away the mythology of Willy Wonka and his magical chocolate factory.  Marketed as a business book, The Emperors of Chocolate does spend a lot of time talking about the management styles of Hershey and Mars, number-crunching, and failed/successful marketing campaigns.  But it’s never boring, even if you haven’t the least bit of interest in business, because the companies are dominated by the personality and goals of the founders, whose influence has not diminished over the years since their deaths.  

So, y’know, if you like candy (and who doesn’t?) check this book out.  Even though it’s over ten years old, The Emperors of Chocolate still provides a lot of insight into one of the most fascinating industries out there. 

The Storm in the Barn

by Matt Phelan

An American fairy tale set during the Great Depression, The Storm in the Barn follows the adventures of young Jack (there’s always a Jack in these tales) Clark as he and his family struggle to survive in the gritty Dust Bowl.   Jack is picked on by bullies when he goes into town. Want and illness plague his family. But Jack has seen a strange thing; a mysterious, cloaked figure with a face ‘like rain’ is hiding in an abandoned barn. When he tries to share what he’s seen, his father decides that Jack suffers from dust dementia and brushes him off.   But Jack can sense that this mysterious being is the key to freeing his family and their town from the cruel grip of the drought, so he sets off on his own to confront the creature that calls itself the Storm King…

The art in this graphic novel is just fantastic. Like the Kansas pictured in The Wizard of Oz, given a nod by Phelan throughout the story as Jack’s sister reads a book from the series to her brother, this world is monochrome and lifeless.    The only colorful pages exist in the memory of Jack’s mother, as she tells her children of the Kansas of her childhood, when crops grew and everyone was happy. Everything else is rendered in muted shades of brown, grey and the weary blue of worn denim. It is a depressed palette, perfect for the mood of Jack’s town.

I call the story a fairy tale, but it’s also a fairly realistic portrayal of life in the Dirty Thirties. ‘Dust pneumonia’ was a real affliction for many living in the Dust Bowl, as the great dust storms filled young lungs with dust that couldn’t be coughed out. Brutal jackrabbit drives, in which rabbits were rounded up and slaughtered, were an ugly and controversial community event. Matt Phelan really brought these stories to life in an accessible way that both young and older readers can appreciate.   

I would never have thought this was Matt Phelan’s first graphic novel. It’s a beautiful work, with great art and an entertaining and poignant story. Be sure to check it out!

Murder of a Medici Princess

by Caroline P. Murphy

 

While not as famous as her relative Catherine in France, Isabella de’ Medici's life was just as interesting, especially as told by Caroline Murphy in this new biography. Daughter of Cosimo de’ Medici, the first Grand Duke of Tuscany, Isabella grew up surrounded by luxury during the high Italian Renaissance. She was especially close to her father, and the power of the Medici name allowed her to be educated and gained her an unusual amount of freedom for a woman of her time. Even marriage to a prominent Italian noble, Paolo Giordano Orsini, couldn’t slow her life of endless pleasure-seeking and partying. 

Murphy leads us every step of the way, introducing heroes and villains worthy of the epic poetry and ballads Isabella so loved, and plot twists worthy of a soap opera. Isabella was close to her family – almost too close, especially to her brother Giovanni and her father Cosimo, inspiring nasty rumors – and the power of her father allowed her to stay in Florence, rather than joining her husband in Rome. She fell in love with her cousin’s husband, the handsome Troilo Orsini, a man who charmed almost everyone he met, including thorny Catherine de’ Medici in France.   But all good times come to an end, and with Cosimo’s death Isabella’s rising star began to tumble and spiral out of control.

Murphy’s biography is rich with detail and images, including color plates in the middle of the book of Isabella, her siblings and lovers, and page after page of notes. Murphy never hems and haws with “Isabella may have done this” or “It is possible that Isabella met so-and-so,” which is one of my pet peeves in biographies. She’s done her research and can complete the world of the Medici court, but she doesn’t overwhelm the reader with ever little factoid she uncovered. She includes a lot of [translations of] Isabella’s letters, and other primary source documents whenever possible.

One of my favorite reads this year. Highly recommended for you history buffs out there.

            To read more about Murder of a Medici Princess,but it or add it to your wishlist, click here.

The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon

by David Grann

In 1925, renowned explorer Percy Fawcett took his son and boldly trekked into the Amazon, determined to reveal the location of a lost city he suspected lay hidden beneath the dense jungle canopy.   Neither he nor any members of his party were ever seen again. Journalist David Grann is determined to trace Fawcett’s final steps and discover what ultimately happened to the famous man – succeeding where many have failed over the years – and hopefully, in the process, finding the fabled city Fawcett was willing to risk everything to uncover.

The Lost City of Z was everything I wanted The White Mary  to be, and more. Grann begins his quest by hunting down every last scrap of information Fawcett left behind, in the process piecing together the biography of a fascinating man. If anyone could have located a mythical city in the middle of the jungle, it was Col. Percy Fawcett, a man who had successfully completed multiple excursions into the wild with only the barest of supplies. Grann brings the explorer back from the dead as a larger-than-life Indiana Jones, a man who lives and breathes adventure. But he doesn’t sugarcoat Fawcett’s flaws: the man is clearly obsessed with “Z” to the point that his grip of reality seems tenuous, and he was apparently quite merciless to his assistants in the jungle. Several men who survived an expedition with Fawcett describe a man who seems to be not a hero, but a monster. He is a fascinating, complex character and, it seems, the last of a dying breed.

Just as captivating as Fawcett’s original explorations are Grann’s attempts to recreate his path and track down the explorer’s final fate. Usually a writer for The New Yorker, Grann isn’t anyone’s idea of a heroic explorer. It’s pretty clear that without our modern technology, he’d never have been able to attempt to follow Fawcett. But he is a thorough journalist, and an entertaining writer who knows when he has a good story. He takes his reader on a whirlwind adventure that spans the globe.

To read more about The Lost City of Z, buy it or add it to your wishlist, click here.

The Heretic Queen

by Michelle Moran

Amazon.com: The winds of change are blowing through Thebes. A devastating palace fire has killed the Eighteenth Dynasty’s royal family—all with the exception of Nefertari, the niece of the reviled former queen, Nefertiti. The girl’s deceased family has been branded as heretical, and no one in Egypt will speak their names. A relic of a previous reign, Nefertari is pushed aside, an unimportant princess left to run wild in the palace. But this changes when she is taken under the wing of the Pharaoh’s aunt, then brought to the Temple of Hathor, where she is educated in a manner befitting a future queen.

Soon Nefertari catches the eye of the Crown Prince, and despite her family’s history, they fall in love and wish to marry. Yet all of Egypt opposes this union between the rising star of a new dynasty and the fading star of an old, heretical one. While political adversity sets the country on edge, Nefertari becomes the wife of Ramesses the Great. Destined to be the most powerful Pharaoh in Egypt, he is also the man who must confront the most famous exodus in history.

The Heretic Queen continues the story began in Moran’s novel Nefertiti, but it is not a sequel. The two books are written so that you needn’t read one in order to understand the other. However, if you are not previously familiar with the reigns of Akhenaten and Nefertiti, I would highly recommend reading Nefertiti first so that you can have clearer sense of just how and why these two became so reviled that subsequent rulers sought to blot them from Egypt’s history. Truthfully, I would encourage you just to read Nefertiti anyway, because it was FANTASTIC. But moving on…

I read this book in a single evening. It was amazing. One minute I was sitting on my bed in California, the next I was caught in a time vortex and thrust back nearly four millennia to the land of the Nile. In the sparkling gleam of the palace, nothing is as it seems, and few can be trusted.   Nefertari has to constantly fight for her position – which goes against her gentle and compassionate nature – and the intrigues entwine every member of the court. Everybody wants something, and with the stakes so high the competition is intense. The Heretic Queen’s pages are heavy with drama (and I don’t mean the high school variety) and there’s truly something for everyone. You like action? How would a battle with pirates suit you? Romance is more to your taste? The love of Ramesses and Neferari is the stuff of legends.

Michelle Moran did choose to address the story of Moses, the events of which are commonly attributed to the reign of Ramesses II. However, it’s not the same account you find in the Bible. Due to the absence of evidence supporting the events of Exodus outside of the Bible, Moran chose to create a similar figure that could mesh more easily into what archeology has revealed about the political climate of Ramesses’ kingdom.    

This is my first 5-star book reviewed in 2009. Go pick it up and start reading!

To read more about The Heretic Queen, buy it or add it to your wishlist, click here.

The Tragedy of Macbeth Part II: The Seed of Banquo

by Noah Lukeman

Shakespeare's infamous play Macbeth ends with Malcolm being crowned King of Scotland after Macduff has murdered ambitious, ill-fated Macbeth. Fine and dandy it seems at first, but wait...didn't the witches predict that Banquo would father an endless line of kings? Malcolm is the son of Duncan, not Banquo! Were the witches wrong?

When Noah Lukeman was confronted with this unresolved plot thread, he began to wonder if Shakespeare had planned to continue the tale of Scotland's monarchy in another play. It would make sense; two of Shakespeare's historical plays came in multiple parts. Henry IV had Parts 1 and 2 while Henry VI was split into three. Scouring the original play, Lukeman found lines that indicated Lady Macbeth had a child, yet it never makes an appearance in the original play. Surely the heir to Macbeth's throne would have warranted some mention! Where was the child? Finally, what happened to Malcolm's brother, Donalbain? At the close of the play he is still in Ireland, which seems odd – why has he not returned to his brother's side?

Intrigued by these lingering plot holes, Lukeman decided to finish the play and wrote The Tragedy of Macbeth Part II. In tribute to Shakespeare, Macbeth II is written as a five-act play in measured blank verse. It picks up ten years after the events of Macbeth, with Malcolm still wearing the Scottish crown. But he is an uneasy ruler, haunted by the prophecy that Banquo's sons will take the throne. Fleance, child of Banquo, is gathering men to his side, but that would be a minor threat were Donalbain not building an armada in Ireland. Malcolm wants to trust his brother, but his advisors insist Donalbain means him ill. In desperation Malcolm seeks the witches to dispel the rumors and advise him. Naturally, they answer in riddles, and in attempting to unravel their meaning Malcolm sets himself upon the same course of misinterpretation and disaster that led to his predecessor's demise...

I wasn't sure what to expect from Macbeth II, but I am pleased to report that Lukeman did a top-notch job creating a fresh play in the style of Shakespeare. The story moves quite briskly, and takes quite a few intriguing twists. My biggest concern was that the book would be written in such a way that it would not translate well to stage, but reading through the play I quickly dismissed these concerns. The rhythm of the words and the drama of the story would make for quite a suspenseful and entertaining show. In fact, I really hope Lukeman is in the process of negotiating a production somewhere.

But until the happy day we can see Macbeth II at a local Shakespeare in the Park, check out the book and find out just how the witches' prophecies were finally fulfilled.

To read more about The Tragedy of Macbeth Part II: The Seed of Banquo, buy a copy or add it to your wishlist, click here.

Guardian

by Julius Lester

Julius Lester is one of the most lyrical authors writing for children today.  His writing has a very poetic quality; it is very descriptive without becoming flowery and he doesn't rely on embellishment for its own sake.  He chooses his words very carefully, and they are very evocative of the characters' emotions.

  Lester also respects the intelligence of the young, and is not afraid to bring the horrors of reality to his literature. In his latest book, Guardian, a fourteen-year-old Southern boy named Ansel is forced to confront the racism in his town, within his family, and deep inside himself when he is forced to make a decision between the truth and the will of his father. It's a short novella, barely 100 pages, covering a week in Ansel's life. It is very tight and compact; I can't really talk about the plot without giving away a major spoiler.

At the end of the book Lester talks about the history of lynching in the South, a specter that has hovered over his life since childhood in the South. The book is written from the perspective of a white boy on the verge of adulthood, an angle Lester had wanted to tackle for quite some time. As he said in a 1970 letter, “White writers are so dishonest. Seldom have they written what they could have and should have, which is, the white side of racism. I'd like to see a children's novel about a little white boy who goes with his father to a lynching.”

The book is disturbing. It's dark and touches an ugly side of humanity that most of us prefer not to even think about. So I have to admit, I would be careful about when I would let a child read this book, because I'd have to be sure he or she was capable of understanding the injustice and horror. But once I was sure they could handle it, I would make sure the kid read this book, because it is only through facing the demons in our society that we can exorcise them completely.

To read more about Guardian, buy a copy or add it to your wishlist, click here.

The Whiskey Rebels

by David Liss

Plot Summary from Amazon.com: Ethan Saunders, once among General Washington’s most valued spies, now lives in disgrace, haunting the taverns of Philadelphia. An accusation of treason has long since cost him his reputation and his beloved fiancée, Cynthia Pearson, but at his most desperate moment he is recruited for an unlikely task–finding Cynthia’s missing husband. To help her, Saunders must serve his old enemy, Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton, who is engaged in a bitter power struggle with political rival Thomas Jefferson over the fragile young nation’s first real financial institution: the Bank of the United States.
Meanwhile, Joan Maycott is a young woman married to another Revolutionary War veteran. With the new states unable to support their ex-soldiers, the Maycotts make a desperate gamble: trade the chance of future payment for the hope of a better life on the western Pennsylvania frontier. There, amid hardship and deprivation, they find unlikely friendship and a chance for prosperity with a new method of distilling whiskey. But on an isolated frontier, whiskey is more than a drink; it is currency and power, and the Maycotts’ success attracts the brutal attention of men in Hamilton’s orbit, men who threaten to destroy all Joan holds dear.

As their causes intertwine, Joan and Saunders–both patriots in their own way–find themselves on opposing sides of a daring scheme that will forever change their lives and their new country.

The two narrators tell their stories simultaneously; first a chapter from Ethan's life and then a chapter from Joan's. Joan's narration generally takes place several months before Ethan's, and if you don't pay attention to dates it get confusing, especially when she starts talking about future plans that have already taken place in Ethan's story. But the two main characters have very different voices, so you'll never be confused about which narrator is speaking.

Ethan Saunders is the perfect rake, using tricks and tall tales to keep a mug of ale in one hand and a woman in the other. Yet there is a streak of nobility in him that surfaces time and again, revealing the good man beneath the alcoholic stupor – but it is quickly squashed back down before it can get very far. For example, Saunders promised to free his slave Leonidas when he turned twenty-one. How noble. Saunders has the paperwork filled out and ready to go; Leonidas is technically free. But Saunders doesn't tell him, and Leonidas continues to treat him as his master . What a jerk. Yet even before the papers were created, Saunders gave Leonidas an extraordinary amount of freedom. Leonidas lives separately from Saunders, in another part of Philadelphia, and Saunders is forbidden from bothering him when he is “off-hours.” Since Saunders doesn't often require Leonidas' presence when getting wasted or seducing wealthy women, Leonidas is able to hire himself out and earn money. Their relationship is quite unusual, and highlights the character flaws and conflicts that make Saunders a thoroughly enjoyable character. For him alone, the book is worth your time.

Joan Maycott, the other storyteller, doesn't have the same appeal as Ethan Saunders because she doesn't have the same internal dual between right and wrong. She is a determined woman struggling to write the first American novel – that is, a book in a distinct American style and voice, rather than an imitation of the writings of Europe – while simultaneously trying to build a new life with her husband on the outskirts of civilization. Maycott is usually convinced of the righteousness of her cause and rarely without goals to pursue, and her sheer willpower is something to be admired. But with a star like Ethan Saunders, Joan Maycott doesn't have much of a chance to shine.

The historical fiction found in this story uses real events, like the 1792 Financial Panic, foundation of America's bank, and the struggles between competing visions for the new nation to tell the story. Real historical figures like Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson are key characters. The timing of the publication of this book is quite fortuitous on David Liss' part (or is it calculated?) because of the many parallels that can be drawn between the financial troubles of his fledgling nation and the current recession America finds itself in. It's full of action, and highly entertaining, with spies running all over the place competing to solve the mysteries that pile up one after another. Read up!

To read more about The Whiskey Rebels, buy a copy or add it to your wishlist, click here.

 

As you may recall, the contest to win a copy of Bottomfeeder ended July 31^st. Our winner is Elizabeth, who proved that stuffing the entry box (she had the highest number of entries in the random drawing) will sometimes net you the prize!  (It's never, ever worked for me, though.)  Our next contest will launch Sunday, August 2^nd, so keep your eyes open!

The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher

By Kate Summerscale

            On a dark night in a country estate called Road Hill House a young boy, Saville Kent, is brutally murdered.  Child of an unpopular government inspector, the suspect list for the gristly death is long, ranging from his nursemaid Elizabeth Gough and his father Samuel Kent to former servants and complete strangers.  The local police don’t know what to do – violent murders aren’t part of their daily routine – so they summon a detective from London with experience investigating homicides.  Scotland Yard sends one of their best men: Detective-Inspector Jonathan Whicher.

            In Kate Summerscale’s The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher, we are treated to more than a mere murder mystery.  This book covers the facts of the case, but she also paints a broader picture of Victorian society as a whole, and the ramifications of Whicher’s investigations.  The attitudes of the middle- and upper classes towards working-class men like Whicher hindered his investigation time and time again.  Searches for evidence were half-hearted and skipped entirely in the house of Samuel Kent, because local constables didn’t want to disturb the peace of the family.  Whicher bypasses this sensitivity and dives right into his investigation, rummaging through nightdresses and prying into the past of the Kent family.  England is shocked.  In 1860 this was absolutely inappropriate behavior.   Detectives were a relatively new addition to the to the police and were considered barely above the dark underworld they worked in, for how could they know so much about criminals unless they were villains themselves?  But even as society shook their heads and disapproved they clung to every word printed by newspapers as a “detective-mania” swept the country.  Summerscale examines the role of detectives in fiction, and shows the many ways that Whicher’s work in the Road Hill House murder inspired the great writers of the era: Wilkie Collins, Charles Dickens, and even American Dashiell Hammett.

            The book is also an intriguing look back to the forensics and crime scene technology available in the days before DNA could easily prove guilt or innocence.  A single piece of evidence could make or break a case, and it was far too easy to make a false accusation for every policeman could read the evidence differently.  In fact, many amateur “armchair” detectives flooded Scotland Yard with suggestions in the case, especially when Whicher’s controversial conclusion is unable to stand in court because a critical piece of evidence is unable to be produced.   A fascinating book about the birth of the detective and the tribulations of Mr. Whicher as he struggles with one of the most shocking crimes of his time; true-crime fans everywhere grab a chair and settle in for a good read.

Buy the book on Amazon.com, or add it to your wishlist.

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