Autumn in Auburn

"But then fall comes, kicking summer out on its treacherous ass as it always does one day sometime after the midpoint of September, it stays awhile like an old friend that you have missed. It settles in the way an old friend will settle into your favorite chair and take out his pipe and light it and then fill the afternoon with stories of places he has been and things he has done since last he saw you."
-Stephen King, Salem's Lot

So I just finished reading ‘Doctor Sleep‘ by Stephen King – did you know that this is the sequel to ‘The Shining’?  I did not realize this until I got to reading the summary on the jacket cover – I’m bad.  I see a new Stephen King novel and I just get it, doesn’t really matter what the story is going to be, I know I’ll like it.  Although, I have to admit I’m a bigger fan of Mr. King’s non-horror works, like ‘The Stand’ or ‘Shawshank Redemption’.   All of his books are good, but those are just stellar to me.  I don’t like the true horror quite as much because they scare me silly and I live alone.  Actually, I don’t quite live alone, I have the Teenage Banana and the Baby T-rex, but it is humiliating to admit to your children that you scared yourself right into a nightmare.  And really, it’s not like I can keep a gun or a can of mace in my room, because if you remember, I’m a TERRIBLE klutz and would more likely get myself than a bad guy.

Sorry!  Tangent.  Do you all remember The Shining?  It was first published in 1977 and was made into a movie (starring Jack Nicholson) in 1980.  The story takes place at a deserted Colorado hotel with a dark history.  Jack Torrance (dad) is an out-of-work alcoholic who used to be a teacher and for him, this caretaking job is his last chance.  His son, Danny, has the shining (a way of knowing things, I guess you’d say) and as the season progresses, Jack begins to lose his mind and Danny (bless his baby heart) is witness to all the darkness in his father’s mind and to all the ghosts in the hotel.  In the end, Jack dies and the hotel burns down.  Doctor Sleep is kind of a twofold story – a sequel to The Shining, showing us how Danny (now Dan) has ended up and a story that can stand on its own (with new characters, including Abra, who also has the shining, but much stronger than Danny did).

We first catch up with Dan, who was an alcoholic for most of his life (trying to live with the memories of his crazy dad, I guess).  He eventually steps on the path to recovery, ending up in a New Hampshire town (where Abra lives) and works in hospice care, helping patients over to the other side with his gift.

The new part of the story centers around a group called the True Knot, a band of gypsy-like people, who travel around the country.  The True Knot are sort of immortal, I guess.  They can die, but as long as they feed correctly, they have a much longer than normal lifespan.  They feed on a substance called ‘steam’ which is given off by children with the shining as they die or are tortured.  Guess what?  They are after Abra, who is exceptionally gifted. 

The story is how Dan and Abra meet and how they defeat the True Knot.  The end happens pretty quickly and is a tad anticlimactic, but I SO enjoyed the story that it didn’t cause me any undue pain and suffering.  Keep in mind that I am a little biased and could read Stephen King novels over and over (I have done this, actually) and still find them enjoyable.  In this case, Doctor Sleep was solid and entertaining but nowhere near as scary as The Shining.  An entirely different kind of book, actually.  I would have to say that you can see the growth in Mr. King as a writer (uh, DUH, it was written what?  35 years later?).  Anyway, imho, worth a read.  I would give it 4 out of 5 stars.  Maybe 4.5 out of 5.  Yall read it and tell me if I’m being completely biased.  Please let me know what YOU think in the comments!

Coming Soon:

There are certain writers that I really look forward to their new releases.  Well, good news.  There are a bunch of great ones coming out!

1.       We Are Water by Wally Lamb (October 22).  Excellent author – I especially liked ‘She’s Come Undone’ and ‘I Know This Much Is True’.

2.       The All-Girl Filling Stations Last Reunion by Fannie Flagg (November 5). If you haven’t read Ms. Flagg, you definitely should.  You most likely know her as the author of the book that produced the movie ‘Fried Green Tomatoes’ but she has some other wonderful books, including ‘I Still Dream About You’ and ‘Can’t Wait to Get to Heaven’.  Such feel good books, I promise you.

3.       The Valley of Amazement by Amy Tan (November 5).  I’m sure you remember her book, ‘Joy Luck Club’ but other definite include ‘The Bonesetter’s Daughter’ and ‘Saving Fish from Drowning’.

4.       Stella Bain by Anita Shreve (November 12).  The first book I read by Anita Shreve was ‘The Pilot’s Wife’, which was a selection of the Oprah book club.  It was amazing.  And also traumatizing.  A book you don’t forget, for sure.  Still though, she’s an iffie author for me.  Some of her things I really love (‘Resistance’ for example) and some just don’t do it for me.

5.       Still Life with Bread Crumbs by Anna Quindlen (January 28).  ‘Black and Blue’ was the first book of hers that I read and it is raw and harsh, but compelling and utterly readable.  I’ve also read ‘Every Last One’ and ‘Blessings’ and have completely enjoyed them.

 

Well, that’s all for today, folks!  Thanks for reading, happy Fall and as always, please leave a comment if you have suggestions or ideas or think I’m full of it!!

 

 

 

Ode to Heartbreak OR Doesn't Anybody Love the Fat Girl?

For those of you that don't already know, I've recently gone through somewhat of a personal setback.  And I started wondering this morning what people do when they think they just can't make it one.more.day. To be honest, in the last three months, I've tried vodka (WHICH only serves to make me even MORE weepy), sleep (which, tbh, works great, but I'm losing 16 hours out of every day), hobbies (I have sewn till my fingers are bloody) and reading.  So today, I'm going to review some great heartbreak books (let me clarify, books that are really good to read when you are staying in bed, unwashed and uncombed for 23 days straight and the Chinese delivery people will no longer come to your house and you are surrounded in a sea of tissues and Vicks Vapo-Rub).

First and formost – ‘Silver Linings Playbook’ by Matthew Quick.  I read the book before I saw the movie and honestly, was tremendously moved by both.  Yall know me.  I’m generally not impressed when they make a movie out of a book – it just never seems to measure up.  But this time, they did a tremendous job.  Yes, a lot was left out, but somehow, they did the movie just right.  So.  If you haven’t read SLP, you need to.  Immediately.  And then get the movie.
 
The story centers around Pat Peoples, who has just been let out of a mental hospital – there has been some sort of incident and he is separated from his wife, Nikki.  Pat has a theory that if he works hard at his physical and emotional health he can make everything right and reunite with Nikki.  (Can I interject here?  In months of sheer denial, I thought much the same.  If I worked very hard on my physical and emotional health that I could make a certain someone realize what a great package deal I am.  Um, so NOT true)  Anyway, Pat meets Tiffany (who is widowed and seems to be depressed and a little bit unfriendly) – they become friends of a sort – and she agrees to act as a go-between for Pat and Nikki, if he will give up football and participate in a dance competition with her.  I won’t spoil the ending for you, but suffice it to say that it is a beautiful, poignant story that warmed my heart.

I really gravitate toward feel-good books during a bad time – I understand that the protagonist has to suffer, but I really want them to learn, feel better and find their way to a better situation!  (Kind of how I feel about myself, but it is a lot harder to actually DO than to just read about.)

So another thing.  Please don’t judge.  But I went to a psychic and she answered all my questions very quicky and decisively (and so far, she has been correct, but we’ll see).  Interestingly, she also recommended a book for me, called ‘The Soulmate Secret’ by Arielle Ford.

 

 

 

 

Now, those of you that know me know I am very pragmatic and don’t have a lot of use for self help books – I generally believe that you just have to pull yourself up by your bootstraps and continue on.  But I bought this book and I read it in one day.  (which is not unusual for me, but a self help book?  very unusual)  This book is so good and so positive, it really helped pull me out of the funk into which I was headed.  It is a book about being open to meeting your soulmate (really meeting new people) and how to let go of old, toxic relationships (and how to stop thinking about them!) and how to be happy just being by yourself.  I really enjoyed it, even if there were some words (‘feelingizations’) and new agey things in there that I wasn’t too sure of.  Surprisingly, most of it wasn’t even about ‘how to find the love of your life’, it was about  how to love yourself.  Really liked this one.

The last book that I would recommend in the midst of a heartbreak is, ‘Never Change’ by Elizabeth Berg.  You know I love her stories.  All of them.  Her heroines are normal, non-perfect women who seem to be a little bewildered and somewhat naïve.  I can totally relate.  Anyway, in this novel, Myra is a home-health nurse who has been called to take care of a new patient.  The patient turns out to be a boy she went to high school with (and had a crush on), Chip.  The story is about Chip’s last days, which are really very normal and wonderful, thanks to Myra, and about how they end up falling in love just as Chip’s life is coming to an end.  It is a beautiful, sad and hopeful story.  I hope you like it.

 

That’s all for today.  Yall take care!  Chrissy