Book Review

In the Garden of Beasts by Eric Larson

Just like the wonderful writing of the brilliant Bettany Hughes, Eric Larson can take you back in time with his words. He has the ability to write in a way that informs, entertains and transports. I have read this author before with the wonderful "Devil in the White City." I enjoyed that book so much I ordered this, his latest book, as soon as it became available. I was not disappointed. And neither will you.

The book concerns a personage I have never heard of before in a time I felt that I was pretty educated about. I guess that when I read books or watched documentaries that concerned the Nazis it was usually from a German or European perspective. I rarely thought about it from how it played out in America beyond the periphery. The dramatic attack on Pearl Harbor by the Japanese seemed to be much more significant, I was wrong. Because there were indeed shifting currents both pro and anti Nazi in our government at the time and when FDR was looking for a new ambassador to Germany during this crucial period,1933, he made no qualms about his reservations about Hitler and how important this post would be. 

Roosevelt choose an academic named William E. Dodd. Together with his wife and two grown children where thrust into the snake pit that saw the rise of Hitler in Germany. Living in Berlin they rubbed shoulder with all of the movers of shakers from Göring to Goebbels to Himmler to Hilter himself. Their diplomatic home was neighboring Ernst Röhm and they were in the thick of his arrest and execution. His daughter, the beautiful, wild and intelligent Martha, had affairs with many high ranking officials and a suspicious (at least to the Nazis fearful of communism) Russian. Most amazing of all, the house they rented during there stay was owned by a Jew who lived on the top floor. This man hoped that living with an American diplomat would protect him and his family.

The book moves fast and is endlessly fascinating. The heart of the book is Martha. She was young, newly divorced and ready to embrace everything. When she arrived in Germany she was enamored of the Fascist regime. We watch as this slowly changes during her time there. Interesting, well-paced, thoroughly documented and educational, this book has something for everyone. Do yourself a favor and read it. While your at it pick up "Devil in the White City."

Goodbye Amy Winehouse

So the 27 club welcomes one more member. What a shame that so much talent and potential will now never be fully realized. She had many demons and battled them for years but the demons were too strong and she too frail to defeat them. In the end, she had become a shambling, slurry mockery of her former self. I think that her voice was the strongest thing about her. I have both of her albums "Frank" and "Back to Black". I played them often and felt many times that she was singing my life. Her voice was like whiskey and cigarettes. She blazed the trail for the sultry female singers that Britain seems to have a profusion of these days. Adele, Duffy, Estelle and even Lily Allen owe their success across the pond to her. I am saddened by all the great music she will never make now. I mourn her passing and I can empathize with the pain she must have been in. I hope she is at peace. Goodbye Amy Winehouse, you will be missed.

Captain Jack makes me Squee!

I watched the first installment of Torchwood brought to American TV tonight. This is a great show, an offshoot of Dr. Who, which is a BBC show that I have loved in it's original incarnation but have never watched in redux. I just love it. It has great characters and imaginative stories that transport. Captain Jack is one of those characters that you think you know but has so much beneath the surface that whole worlds can be built upon not only what is revealed but what is still to come. Is he good? I always thought so, until Children of Earth. Is he evil? No-immoral maybe. But, what would you be if you could never die while feeling the pain of death whenever it happened. Immortality is always sought as the gold standard of life. But life is not breath although I think too much of it is equated as such. To be a vegetable is not life. I won't get into these philosophical discussions tonight. I only want to talk about Miracle Day on Starz.

I didn't know how I would react to this show. I hoped that they would not water down things too much for an American audience. Although, this is the channel that brought us Spartacus so I would expect them to pull no punches. I was not disappointed. When Torchwood came up on screen I got goosebumps and when Captain Jack and his coat of awesome actually showed up I squealed and more than once. I found the translation to be smooth but one thing I noticed right away was the American tendency to glorify violence. From the car accident with poles to releasing a head from its body to a chase on the beach with a jeep and a rocket launcher.  I prefer boobs over bombs but I am happy at this point to ride on the tails of Capt. Jack's coat and see where he takes me. So far, he has never disappointed. This is only the beginning and I can hope that it will get better because I want more. Plus I just adore Gwen. Nothing says modern woman like firing a gun while holding a baby. Because she's a woman, KICK ASS. I am still waiting to see how it plays out but from what I have seen the show is benefiting from the increased production values while retaining what makes it special. I will keep watching.