Still Alice

This is the second guest review from artist and writer, Patricia Koelmel:

Still Alice is a 2007 New York Times bestselling novel by Lisa Genova. After seeing the critically acclaimed 2014 movie of the same name starring Julianne Moore as Alice, I couldn’t wait to read it.

The story follows Dr. Alice Howard-wife, mother, and professor of psychology at Harvard University and world-renowned linguistics expert-as she, her family, friends, and colleagues struggle to deal with her diagnosis of early onset Alzheimer’s disease.  

Cleverly told from Alice’s point of view, she initially believes her recent sudden fogs and memory loss are attributed to a brain tumor or menopause. She is fifty after all. But after extensive neurological testing, she learns the frightening truth. Even worse, due to the fact that she has a hereditary form of the disease, her three adult children are also at risk when they reach her age.

So, who passed this ill-fated disease on to Alice? She traces it back to her father, now deceased. Suddenly, she recalls his forgetfulness, which up until now she’d blamed on a lifetime of alcoholism.

As Alice ponders her incurable disease, she wishes she had cancer instead. “With cancer she’d have something she could fight. There was surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. There was a chance she could win."

If given a choice, which door would you choose? Cancer or Alzheimer’s? Thought-provoking to say the least, eh? As for Alice, she chooses Door no. 3: She devises a plan to commit suicide before her mind is so far gone she is in need of expensive institutional care.

Folks, while this book does not have the thrill of unexpected plot twists or chills that will have you on the edge of your seat, it is a page-turner nonetheless. With chapters dedicated to a singular month in time, the author skillfully allows the reader to observe Alice’s shockingly rapid decline. For instance, in April, she loses track of time and goes to work in the middle of the night in her nightclothes. In July, she forgets where the bathroom is located in her own home and wets herself before she is able to find it. In August, she fails to recognize one of her own children.

Still Alice will leave you hoping, even praying (if you are the praying kind), that neither you nor your loved ones will ever develop Alzheimer’s and face a future as alien as any dystopian society.

Lastly, I would be amiss if I did not bring to your attention, as evident in her acknowledgements, the in-depth research Ms. Genova did on the subject of Alzheimer’s and academic life at Harvard in order to tell this story.

Courtesy of that research, here are a few general facts about early onset Alzheimer’s as they appear in the book:

• There are an estimated five hundred thousand people in the United States with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease.
• Early-onset is defined as Alzheimer’s under the age of sixty-five.
• Symptoms can develop in the thirties and forties.

RATING: 5 out of 5 stars

Comment: Rick’s Reviews thanks Patricia for her insightful review of a novel that deals with the sensitive plight of thousands of patients and their families. The first case of this disease was treated by German psychiatrist Alois Alzheimer in 1901. He followed the symptoms of Auguste Deter until she died in 1906.

From the movie:

THE WOMAN in WHITE

This novel by Wilkie Collins took me the better part of a month to assimilate. It had to be savored...it was that good. This is the novel that in 1860 kicked the great Charles Dickens’s butt. What do I mean by that? Well, Dickens published his classic novel A Tale of Two Cities at the same time, and lo and behold, Collins’s novel outsold Dickens’s novel. To make matters worse, both were published in serial form in Dickens’s periodical, All the Year Round, from April 30 to November 26, 1859 before being published as novels in 1860. This had to embarrass Dickens even though they were best of friends. Could Collins’s novel be the first great mystery? Many literary pundits believe so. There are more twists and turns in this novel than “Carter has liver pills” (circa 1868). Some of the characters in this novel challenge real life Victorian villains; such as, Justice Blackborough and Lord MacDonald. At the time the novel was written, men were dominant in English society. So I wonder...was Wilkie advocating women’s perseverance and grit (Marian Halcombe), or women’s frailty (Laura Fairlie)? Since Laura later refused to sign a important document for her husband, I believe the answer is the former.

Is Wilkie Collins a descriptive writer? You bet your sweet bippy! Here is part of his description of Laura Fairlie’s uncle: ”Mr. Fairlie’s age, when I saw him, might have been reasonably computed at over fifty and under sixty years. His beardless face was thin, worn, and transparently pale, but not wrinkled; his nose was high and hooked; his eyes were of a dim grayish blue, large, prominent, and rather red round the rims of the eyelids; his hair was scanty, soft to look at, and of that light sandy colour which is the last to disclose its own changes towards gray. He was dressed…” Wow! And what does Laura’s hair look like? Okay, here is part of Wilkie's description, “Her hair is of so faint and pale a brown - not flaxen, and yet almost as light; not golden, and yet almost as glossy-that it nearly melts, here and there, into the shadow of the hat. It is plainly parted and drawn back over the ears, and the line of it ripples naturally as it crosses her forehead.” Why can’t modern day authors write like this? I’m only bringing this up so you know why I couldn’t rush through this classic...each sentence had to be appreciated for what it was. The reader can clearly visualize what each character looked like. By the way, the 1948 movie was undoubtedly aided by Wilkie’s descriptions because each actor looked exactly like they were conveyed in the novel.

The novel itself is narrated by many of the characters in an alternating manner, although only one is narrated by a villain. This is done in a way wherein the reader envisions the cast of characters in the same room passing along the baton until the story ends. Some narrations are epistolary, others are in the first person. How did Wilke come up with the idea for this complicated novel? As a lifelong sufferer of gout, he was known to be addicted to opium (in the form of laudanum). As a side effect, can this drug tweak the writer’s artistry? Many of the English writers were (for whatever reason) on this drug. And did Charles Dickens get the idea of a recurring character from Wilkie Collins? I’m talking about Collin’s character, Pesca versus Dickens’s Orlick in Great Expectations, published in 1861. All of this is guesswork on my part but isn’t supposition the fun part of reviewing a novel? I ask a lot of questions, don’t I? Well, that being said...do you want to know what this novel is about?

Walter Hartright (the first narrator) is an art teacher who has been hired by Frederick Fairlie of Limmeridge House to be a live-in art teacher at the mansion for Frederick’s niece, Laura Fairlie and her half sister, Marian Halcombe. Before he starts his employ, he meets a mysterious woman in white on the road at midnight. She is in a hurry and seems stressed out. She wants to know if Walter knows a certain Baronet, he says that he doesn’t and she seems relieved. He helps her find her way to London. After she leaves, two men in a convertible carriage stop a policeman and ask him if he has seen a lady in white. Apparently, she has just escaped from a asylum. Who is this lady in white? The next day Walter starts his job at the mansion. He meets a somewhat unlovely but very intelligent Marian Halcombe who dotes on her beautiful but docile half sister, Laura Fairlie. The uncle, Frederick Fairlie, lives alone upstairs ogling his art possessions. He seems to be a hypercondriac because his illnesses are never revealed or diagnosed in the novel. He can’t stand loud noises, light bothers his eyes, and visitors to his room (if granted) must speak in low tones because of “the state of his nerves.” Walter tells Marian about the lady in white (we find out later that she is Anne Catherick). It is revealed that Anne (who is a dead ringer for Laura) was loyal to Laura’s mother (since passed on), a well known teacher. As the months pass, Walter and Laura fall in love.

Marion ask Walter to quit his employ because Laura is engaged to be married to Sir Percival Glyde, a Baronet. The marriage was arranged by Laura’s father before his death and Laura agrees to it because she couldn’t break her promise to her father. An unsigned letter arrives for Laura stating that Sir Percival is evil. Before Walter leaves, Marian and he learn that the letter came from the lady in white. Heartbroken, Walter leaves Laura and soon leaves the country, joining a journey to Honduras. Sir Percival comes to Limmeridge House as a house guest in order to make arrangements for a future date of marriage with Laura. From here on in, the novel gets very mysterious with numerous twist and turns. The reader will meet the lady in white’s mother (what does she know about the evil Baron? Is she in cahoots?) and the Baron’s good friend...the obese Count Fosco (the original confidence man?) and his cigarette rolling wife, the Countess Fosco, who is Laura’s aunt. What does this loathsome couple have to gain with the impending marriage of Sir Percival and Laura Fairlie? Will Walter come back from Honduras in time to unravel the mystery? Is Sir Percival’s motive for marriage monetary? Why does Italian language teacher Pesca reappear in the novel 600 pages later? Yes readers, there are many surprises ahead...some hurtful, some joyful. I can only say that I can’t remember when I enjoyed a novel more than The Woman in White.  

RATING: 5 out of 5 stars

Comment: I mentioned the 1948 movie in the second paragraph. Well I can’t find the movie anywhere, but I did some research on it. As I said, Wilkie’s descriptions of the characters were so good that it was easy for the movie people to cast the parts. Here are the characters and the actors in the missing movie:
Walter Hartright is played by Gig Young (excellent choice).
Laura Fairlie and Anne Catherick are played by Eleanor Parker (in a dual role).
Sir Percival Glyde is played by John Emery.
Marian Halcombe is played by Alexis Smith (too good looking for the part?).
Count Fosco is played by the obese Sydney Greenstreet (a no- brainer!).
Countess Fosco is played by Agnes Moorehead (another no- brainer!).
Frederick Fairlie is played by John Abbott.

The movie poster:

FAILED MOMENTS

The author sent me a copy of his novel to read and review:

In Failed Moments...is A. Robert Allen asking, “If you could, would you redo your life, how about past lives?” Is reincarnation really a possibility? Where does the soul go? Wow, this novel is intriguing and full of unanswered questions that nobody alive knows the answers, although novels, such as, Proof of Heaven (see my review of 8/10/13) written by Dr. Eben Alexander seems to think they have the answer. I believe that Mr. Allen’s approach to this subject is refreshing and dissimilar to other books on this subject. It’s almost a Pre-Novel for a cleaned-up version of Dante Alighieri’s 14th century epic poem, The Divine Comedy, without the tour. The novel is highly polished for a first-time effort, and I read that…”Failed Moments is a fictional account of the exploits of his ancestors during racially charged periods in the past.” (in the author's bio)

Patrick Walsh arrives at the Boigen Hotel on the West Side of Manhattan to meet a first date. He doesn’t remember seeing this hotel before. His date turns out to be his deceased Aunt Grace of five years ago. What is this place? His aunt takes him into the hotel cafe named Reflektions for coffee. They are served by an elderly man with the initials “P.S.” on his shirtsleeve (who is he?) and he tells them, “I think it might be best if the two of you finished your chat in your room. Here is your key card.” In the room, Aunt Grace tells him, “Your body is forty blocks north of here on Tenth Avenue in St. Luke’s Roosevelt Hospital and you are on life support.” He was hit by a stray bullet. Apparently the hotel is a conduit to the afterlife, with street exits for reincarnations, heaven, second chances and hell. His Aunt Grace tells him that his past two lives are being recalled so he can correct his past mistakes. She will go with him as a guide and helper. Is Aunt Grace the ghost of the past, like in Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol?

Patrick’s first life was as Patrice, a affluent mixed race (gens de couleur) plantation owner on a island that is now known as Haiti. It’s the late 1700s and slavery is abundant even though the holder of the island, France, has freed the slaves. It’s a trifecta story of mixed race owners at odds with white owners (grands blancs), who will not let go of slavery and of the slaves who demand their freedom. The second life story is about Patrick (Paddy) Allen in 1863 N.Y.C. during the Civil War draft riots. I found this story less interesting than the first. In between the remedial efforts of Patrick and Grace, they meet once again at the Reflektion Cafe. I thought that it was witty of the author to have Patrick and Grace observe the past as birds sitting on a branch. It’s an unique novel written with excellent prose.

I do recommend this novel and have only one complaint. Maybe it’s me, but I didn’t get a good handle on what Patrick corrected in his past lives. What I mean is that the reader never really finds out what mistake he made in the past. If it was there, I missed it. However, it was an enjoyable novel from a budding author. Buy it and enjoy!

RATING: 4 out of 5 stars

Comment: So what book is out there that offers the definitive answer of what happens after death? Well, Mark Hitchcock, holder of a Masters and Doctoral degree from the Dallas Theological Seminary thinks he knows. He wrote, 55 Answers to Questions about Life After Death.

 Amazon says, “Four thousand years ago, amid tragic suffering and death, Job asked the question of the ages: “If a man dies, will he live again?” Since the dawn of history, the subject of death and the afterlife has been the great question of human existence. It’s a subject that everyone wonders about. What lies behind the veil of death? Is there really life after death? Is there a place called Hell? (with all these questions, it sounds like I wrote this synopsis) This small yet power-packed book answers in a very straightforward, reader-friendly format, all the most-asked questions ordinary people have about death, near-death experiences, cremation, purgatory, hell, heaven, and our future bodies. You’ll be amazed at awaits us beyond the grave.

Is there sex in heaven?

It’s a fair question! And so are the rest. Go ahead...flip to the table of contents. Discover another one, two, or fifty-four others that are guaranteed to intrigue you. Questions like: Do those in heaven know what’s happening on earth? And will I see my pets in heaven?

Because even if you’d rather avoid the topic, death will not avoid you (what if I get bit by a vampire?). So fire away! Ask the tough questions, and get the dead-on answers you need. Straightforward and easy to read. 55 Answers to Questions about Life after Death satisfies that nagging, curious voice whispering from the center of your mind.

Sorry, the wise guy comments in the brackets are mine and not part of Amazon’s critique.  

the MADMAN and the ASSASSIN

Scott Martelle wrote a nonfiction book about a tragic occurrence that happened over 150 years ago...and yet he made it seem like a current event. Welcome to the world of Erik Larson’s narrative nonfiction. What I mean by that is this book was not your typical monotonous history book. It read like fiction but was factual. Yes, history can be written with verve. It’s the story of Boston Corbett (the madman) and John Wilkes Booth (the assassin). There have been many books written about Abe Lincoln, but this book focuses on the above mentioned men. By the way, the best book that I ever read about our 16th president was Gore Vidal’s 1984 book, Lincoln. Anyway, the author gives us a good lowdown on Corbett and Booth before they meet on 4/26/1865 at Garrett’s farm. The author has a knack for writing about interesting and unusual historical occurrences. In 2014, he wrote a book on the search in Paris, France for (the father of the American Navy) John Paul Jones’s body and gravesite in The Admiral and the Ambassador. The continuity and prose of the author kept the Sandman away from me for the entire 226 pages of the book.

Okay, Who is this Boston Corbett guy? He is a slender 5’ 4” New Yorker with a scraggly beard who was so religious (Methodist) that he castrated himself so he wouldn’t be tempted by another woman after his wife suddenly died. Since he was in the hat making business and inhaled the mercury infused mist that stiffened the fur, he was prone to fits of paranoia. Thus the term...mad as a hatter. How religious did he get? Well, “By the summer of 1858, Corbett-already converted-had followed his trade to Boston, where he fell in with members of the Methodist Episcopal Church and found a religious home and a calling. He became a proselytizer and street preacher, exhorting fellow sinners to heed the word of God and avoid the temptations of drink and sin.” When the Civil War broke out, he went back to New York and joined the Union Army. He served many terms and was ultimately captured by the Confederate Army and sent to the disgraceful Andersonville stockade. There he suffered from bouts of scurvy, chronic diarrhea, and rheumatism that would stay with him for the rest of his life. This is the man who would put a bullet in John Wilkes Booth’s head...almost in the exact headshot location as Booth's to Lincoln.

I can’t say, who is this John Wilkes Booth guy? Since every American knows that he was Lincoln’s assassin. He was a well known actor from a renowned acting family, who was a Southern sympathizer and Union adversary. During Lincoln’s run for reelection, Booth became very resentful, “Before the election, Booth was contemplating an audacious act: he would put together a group of fellow defenders of the South and kidnap Lincoln, spirit him away to Richmond, the capital of the Confederacy, and hold him as a bartering chip to gain the freedom of Rebel prisoners of war.” This plot fizzled, but others cropped up. With the aid of Mrs. Mary Surratt, Lewis Powell, George Atzerodt, David Herold, Dr. Mudd (here’s mud in your eye), and three other minor accomplices, Booth envisioned that he would kill Lincoln, and his co-conspirators would kill Vice President Johnson and Secretary of State William Seward. Two out of the three plots failed. After Booth shot Lincoln, he jumped awkwardly from Lincoln’s booth and fell ten feet to the stage where he broke his leg. The audience didn’t know if his jump was part of the play or not. Booth and Herold escape on horseback.

The rest of the book will answer the following questions: How did the Union Army corner the twosome? How did Corbett become the Booth killer and did he earn fame for his deed? What punishments did the co-conspirators get in their trials? What happened to Boston Corbett after he was mustered out of the Army? What judgement did Harry Wirz, the top Rebel at the horrendous Andersonville prison get? Okay, enough questions, but I only whet your appetite for the rest of this interesting publication. I’m a bigtime fan of historical anything, no less nonfiction that reads like fiction, so i say, “Congratulations, you got it right.”

RATING: 4 out of 5 stars

Comment: Andersonville was a deplorable stockade and a cesspool of disease. More than 13,000 Union soldiers died because of no food, shelter, or clothes. The survivors would live the rest of their lives with major disabilities. The following are quotes from survivors courtesy of The Civil War Trust:

Sergeant Samuel S. Boggs said, “Two guards seized me, took my knife, hat, blanket, and shoes; this was done quickly, and I was ordered to keep quiet and go to the further end of the pen, where some guards had my stripped comrades herded in a corner like a flock of shorn sheep; some had lost all but their shirts and drawers; they skinned us of all the clothes that were not too much worn; then put us on a freight train, gave us some corn-bread, when we started for Richmond, the capital of the Confederacy.”

Volunteer Eugene Forbes said, “No improvements in our condition-terrible coughs and cramps in the bowels, verging on to chronic diarrhea and inflammation of the bowels.”

John L. Ransom said, “Can see the dead wagon loaded up with twenty or thirty bodies at a time, two lengths, just like four foot wood is loaded on to a wagon at the North, and away they go to the grave on a trot. Perhaps one or two will fall off and get run over. No attention paid to that; they are picked up on the road back after more. Was ever before in this world anything so terrible happening? Many entirely naked.”

Brigade Quarter Master, John L. Ransom said, “I walk around camp every morning looking for acquaintances, the sick, &c. Can see a dozen most any morning laying around dead. A great many are terribly afflicted with diarrhea, and scurvy begins to take hold of some. Scurvy is a bad disease, and taken in connection with the former is sure death. Some have dropsy as well as scurvy, and the swollen limbs and body are sad to see.”

Andersonville Prison:

GULLIVER'S TRAVELS

This is a guest review from my eleven year old grandson, Kai O

Gulliver’s Travels isn’t your typical “stranded on an Island” book and Jonathan Swift isn’t like most classic authors. Unlike most authors of his time, who try to teach you new things while entertaining you, Jonathan Swift writes purely to entertain you and excludes any part that is boring, such as, the educational parts.

This book is in four parts. The first part includes the tiny people of the Island of Lilliput. The second part is about the land of giant people. The third part features the floating island of Laputa, which is inhabited by a race of people devoted to the arts. Finally, the fourth part is about an island inhabited by civilized horses, which is the last island landed on by the unfortunate Ship Surgeon, Lemuel Gulliver.

This book is really four different stories about the same topic and the same character. The topic being stranded on unique islands and having to figure-out a way off. The character is Ship Surgeon/Captain Lemuel Gulliver. Every time Mr. Gulliver gets stranded on a island, it will glue you to the book and make you want to keep reading. Gulliver always finds a way to get out of a problem, like when he was almost executed or when he nearly drowned in a wooden box.

I really loved this book and would give it five golden stars. But I also have to say how much I loved the author, Jonathan Swift, because of how unique he was compared to other authors of his time. I would recommend this book to sixth graders and above because of some high level vocabulary. In conclusion, I really hope that you read this book and if you do...I hope you enjoy it!

RATING: 5 out of 5 stars

From the movie:

THE TURN OF THE SCREW

Is this 1898 ghost story by the great American writer Henry James the best ever? I don’t think so. Since American writer Henry James spent most of his life writing his stories in England, I taste some of the boring droplets of the seventeenth century English writers, such as John Bunyan (Pilgrim's Progress ) and John Milton (Paradise Lost ). I would have thought that James would have been greatly influenced by Charles Dickens, a more contemporary author to emulate. I would submit Nathaniel Hawthorne’s 1851 novel, The House of the Seven Gables (see my review of 11/17/2012) as a spookier novel. I’m not saying that James’s novel wasn’t a quality story, but it was put together rather strangely. First of all, we have an unknown narrator telling the story of someone else reading a manuscript from a governess (he says that he knows her) to some friends sitting around a fire. The manuscript tells of her encounter with two ghosts while in charge of an eight year old girl, Flora, and a ten year old boy, Miles. Most of the novella’s composition is in the form of very long and semi-boring paragraphs with very little discourse amongst the characters. I didn’t nod off, but I thought about it. Wow, I must think that I’m the numero uno reviewer to disparage a classic work by a masterly writer like Henry James. I didn’t say that I didn’t enjoy the novella; it’s just that I looked forward to reading this book, and it wasn’t as great as I expected it to be. No harm, no foul. We all know that the ageless writers can sometimes be a tad boring. They tend to want to teach us something while telling the story, like Herman Melville in Moby Dick wanting to educate us on whales and harpoons. While some writers like Mark Twain just wanted to tell us a good old fashion yarn, like Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (see my review of 12/17/2012). Anyway, enough said about that.

Since I didn’t think this novella was very scary (don’t get mad, I liked the story), I did some research on the scariest ghost novels and would you believe that this Henry James story keeps popping up on everybody’s list. So there you go...how much can this reviewer know? Charles Dickens’s, A Christmas Carol didn’t show up on everybody’s list. Go figure. I think that the narrator being unknown and telling the story of Douglas (who is sitting around the fireplace with whomever) recounting his friend’s (the governess) manuscript is kinda odd. First of all, I don’t remember if the governess even had a name, although we find that the ghost governess is Miss Jessel. It kinda reminded me of Daphne du Maurier’s 1938 novel, Rebecca, who didn’t have a name until she married. Anyway, I guess this kind of novel is intriguing but a bit awkward. The rich Uncle in charge of the children wants no part in the kids and turns them over to the above nameless governess in his country estate, known as Bly. She strikes up a friendship with the main housekeeper, Mrs. Grose. The new governess occasionally sees a strange man and woman on the property. Mrs. Grose reveals that it is likely the previous governess (who died) and the children’s Uncle’s valet, Peter Quint, who had a sexual affair with Miss Jessel and also died. Is Mrs. Grose suggesting that there maybe ghosts on the property? I’ll bet you are so scared that you are ready to poop in your pants. Anyway, what are the ghosts doing there and have they come for the children? And why did the seemingly lovely ten year old Miles get kicked out of school? Are the children in cahoots with the ghosts? What is eight year old Flora holding back from the governess? And lastly (thank God), how does Mrs. Grose fit in this story? Okay, no more questions. I know that I "whet your whistle" and scared you to death, but I’m not revealing anymore of the story. Buy your own copy of this ghost story and get all the answers to my questions. 

While his prose is excellent, Henry James has a style that is unique to himself compared to the other great writers of the time. Most of the writers, such as Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville, and Charles Dickens were descriptive writers. James seems to put more emphasis on elongating the paragraphs so the reader could better understand what was happening in the story, while not really caring if the reader knew what the character looked like or how they dressed. When James began his career, most of the descriptive writers were deceased or soon to be. I read that James was the leader of Literary Realism (I’m not fully enlightened), but it must be of the style that I just recognized above. I haven’t read any other Henry James stories, but I did thumb through his short story The Beast in the Jungle, and it was written in the same manner as The Turn of the Screw. While I prefer the descriptive writers whilst I’m reading nineteenth century literature, I did enjoy this novella and (no) it didn’t put me to sleep.

RATING: 4 out of 5 stars

Comment: Now what is my favorite ghost story? How about Charles Dickens’ 1843 novella, A Christmas Carol? Who could forget Ebenezer Scrooge being confronted by his former business partner Jacob Marley, now a ghost, in heavy chains warning Scrooge about his miserly past. He says he will be visited this Christmas Eve by three ghosts: past, present and yet to come. As Scrooge sees his life unfold, he realizes that he has been unfair to his office worker Bob Cratchit, who has a invalid son, Tiny Tim. Will Scrooge see his mistakes and turn his life around before it’s too late? You know the rest, unless you haven’t seen the seemingly dozen movies in the month of December concerning this book. Also it was published on my birthday, 12/19, but in 1843.

How about the movie and T.V. series, Topper ? I loved that show that ran from 10/9/1953 to 7/15/1955, starring Leo G. Carroll as Topper. A very conservative bank vice president, Cosmo Topper and his darling wife buy a house in L.A. that was previously owned by the now deceased George and Marion Kerby and their martini loving St. Bernard, Neil. The couple haunt Topper into funny situations, who is the only person who could see them. I don’t know why this show only lasted two years...it was funny.

Lastly, I loved the 1947 film, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir. Recent widow (Gene Tierney) moves into a seaside cottage against the advice of relatives. Apparently the home is haunted by a benign sea captain (Rex Harrison). Although Mrs. Muir moves in with her daughter (Natalie Wood), she is the only one that see the sea captain ghost (like Topper). The movie was fabulous.

From the T.V. series, Topper:   

Shadow's Fire: A Chance Beginning

The author sent me a copy of his novel to review:

This fantasy novel had a slight herky-jerky start...a tad quick for my hankering. The novel should have elaborated on how and why Erik Eleodum (why the exotic last name?), his brother Befel (another strange name), and his cousin Bryon became disenchanted with farming. Instead, by page eight they were already on the road to adventure. By page 24, they were already gone two years. What? First of all, doesn’t the author, Christopher Patterson, need to develop the story a little more so we can warm up to the protagonists? Second of all, why all the offbeat names (I only mentioned a few)? The Lord of the Rings has already been written. It’s okay to use names of personae and countries that are easy to pronounce and remember. The laborious names don’t add to the flavor of the novel at all, as a matter of fact, it’s an irritation because it’s difficult for the reader to remember all the character’s names. If the writer is going to use unfamiliar names, he or she should provide a cast of characters in the front of the novel with a brief cameo of each character (as an example, refer to Tilar J. Mazzeo’s book, The Hotel on Place Vendome). Okay, enough of my somewhat inane ranting. If I didn’t give my required criticism, it wouldn’t be a Rick Review. Oh, before I tell the reader that I liked the novel...the sketched maps were God-awful. Come on Christopher, hire someone who is an artist. Lastly, how many players do you need in this novel? Is a couple hundred enough? Is this like Stanley Kubrick’s 1960 film, Spartacus with a cast of 10,500? Okay, I can’t stop being a wiseguy and I’m obviously exaggerating. But here is the good news, the novel settles down after a stunted start and becomes enjoyable. What took you so long, Christopher?

The three boys join a caravan of gypsies on their way to the seaport of Finlo. The gypsies are led by Marcus, a giant of a man, who is supported by his beautiful wife, Nadya...is Befel enamored? I think so. Anyway, their trip is uneventful until a man named Fox disappears into the Blue Forest one morning at dawn. Erik, sensing trouble, wakes Marcus and some of the other gypsies. Sure enough the caravan is under attack by slavers. What ensues from page 87 to page 99 is somewhat comparable to fights in Bernard Cornwell’s historical fiction novel, Agincourt. Wow, did I say that? Nobody is better than Cornwell in describing death in battle. But I submit a sample of the slaver battle on page 95, “The blade dug into Befel’s left shoulder, all the way to the handle. Befel cried out, his screams at first silent, and then deafening. He brought his homemade blade up, into the slaver’s gut. The younger man heaved, vomiting blood all over Befel. Befel (note: I don’t like using the same word or name, back to back, such as, Befel) pressed his knife up, rending flesh, cutting bowels. The fighting stopped.” This is only one example of the hand to hand combat scenarios that bleed for 13 continuous pages. Where did this author come up with this prose? I could have easily quit reading this book in the first ten pages, but I’m delighted that I didn’t. Sometimes the reader feels like "throwing in the towel" and discontinue reading. If everybody did that, we would be missing some super classic novels, such as Herman Melville’s Moby Dick (which was super boring at times). Anyhow, after the dead are buried, the three boys continue their trip east (with the survivors of the caravan) to Finlo on the South Sea.

Once in Finlo, Befel seeks help from a barber named Kevon, who is a sometimes surgeon of sorts. Befel needs his shoulder looked at and marginally repaired. This is where I stop recapping the rest of this first novel of a proposed trilogy. What will happen to the three boys (now men) in Finlo...will they board a ship to their great adventure? Or will they get stuck in Finlo at The Drunken Fin? Will the slavers attack them in reprisal? Is that traitor Fox still out there? And who is General Patuk Al’ Banan? Will we see Dwarves in this adventure? Wow, that’s a great series of questions. It seems to me that first time writers like Christopher Patterson feel obligated to start their career with a trilogy. Why? Couldn’t we have closed out this novel and tried something different? If the author retains the dream of writing the great American novel, as his grandmother desires, I don’t think that it is going to be written in the fantasy genre. The author’s first novel is not the great American novel. Other people have tried to write the great American novel, such as, Margaret Mitchell with Gone With the Wind (1936) or Harper lee with To Kill a Mockingbird (1960). Did they? What about Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852)? Which one would you choose? I’ve read all three and can’t decide. The one fact I can determine is that Christopher Patterson has talent. Do I think that he is wasting his talent in the fantasy world? Maybe. I have to admit that I ask a lot of questions in my reviews, don’t I? I recommend this novel and suggest that the author finds a major publisher to promote his future works. How? To quote the great American boxer, Mike Tyson, “These books ain’t window dressing. I think Machiavelli’s the most sophisticated writer outside of Shakespeare. Way ahead of his time. Such a manipulative person. Everything he accomplished he did by kissin’ ass.” Enough said?

RATING: 4 out of 5 stars

Comment: So what are the greatest fantasy series ever written? Well, here are a few that will make any reader's top ten list:

How about George RR Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire (a Game of Thrones)? Fantasybookreview.co.uk says, “George RR Martin’s glorious high fantasy tells the tragic story of treachery, greed and war that threatens the unity of the Seven Kingdoms south of the Wall.” And I say that it is by far the best fantasy series I’ve ever read. I’ve read all the novels and I am waiting with bated breath for the next novel.

How about JK Rowling’s Harry Potter series? Fantasybookreview.co.uk says, “Read and find out how Harry discovers his true heritage at Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft, the reason behind his parents mysterious death, who is out to kill him and how he uncovers the most amazing secret of all time, the fabled Philosopher’s Stone.” This was a very enjoyable series, but I have to admit that I only saw the movies and never read any of the novels.

How about Stephen King’s The Dark Tower series? Fantasybookreview.co.uk says, “Stephen King introduces readers to one of his most enigmatic heroes, Roland of Gilead, the last gunslinger. He is a haunting figure, a loner, on a spellbinding journey into good and evil, in a desolate world which frighteningly echoes our own.” I just made a mental note to read one of these novels. Oops!

How about Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series? Fantastybookreview.co.uk says, “Twoflower was a tourist, the first ever seen on the Discworld. Tourist, Rincewind decided, meant idiot. Somewhere on the frontier between thought and reality exists the Discworld, a parallel time and place which might sound and smell very much like our own, but which looks completely different.” Now, here is a series that I read many of the novels. My favorite being, The Color of Magic. Unfortunately, Mr. Pratchett recently passed away. God Bless.