Title: Autos to Airwave, Mantle to the Mob: Doing It My Way
Author: Jerry Green with Mike Walker
Illustrator:
Publisher and/or Distributor: How High the Moon Publishing
Pages: 184
ISBN: 0-9743606-0-0
Price: $14.95
Publishing Date: 2005
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating:
Although this is a regionally oriented autobiography, this book transcends its local Kansas City roots. The author is a truly amazing gentleman who has had fun along the way to his entrepreneurial successes. Mr. Green has rubbed elbows with the Rat Pack in Las Vegas, a wide variety of famous sports figures, and even mob Godfathers. He has owned car dealerships, a Playboy club in Florida, banks, and a sports-talk radio network with several stations. His story is all about working hard and playing hard. We rated it a high three hearts.
Title: Bear: Heart of a Hero
Author: Captain Scott Shields and Nancy M. West
Illustrator:
Publisher and/or Distributor: Hero Dog Publications
Pages: 160
ISBN: 0-9743659-0-4
Price: $15.95
Publishing Date: 2003
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating:
This is the story about the most effective animal search and rescue (SAR) team involved in the aftermath of 9/11. Bear, an eleven-year-old Golden Retriever, and his owner, Captain Scott Shields, were some of the first SAR animal teams on site at the World Trade Center tragedy. Bear was credited with finding an enormous number of victims. In doing so, he was exposed to a devil’s cocktail of toxic pollutants and died a painful death of cancer because of that exposure.
His story is told in such a touching and loving manner, while at the same time exposing the mindless impediments of the Federal and local disaster relief bureaucracy. If you are an animal lover who enjoys the bond between animals and humans, you will absolutely love this touching and poignant book. We rated it four hearts.
Title: Combat Corpsman
Author: Greg McPartlin
Illustrator:
Publisher and/or Distributor: Berkley Caliber
Pages: 319
ISBN: 0-425-20582-7
Price: $15
Publishing Date: 2005
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating:
The Navy SEALS are rather unusual in that their medical corpsmen are trained to be fellow warriors on their teams. The medics carry effective weapons and are expected to use them to good effect. Trained to heal and trained to kill, this is the true account of Greg McPartlin’s time in the SEALS in Vietnam and with the Marine Recondo units prior to that.
This is a superbly written autobiography that is several cuts above the norm for “we were there” war accounts. The author’s intelligence and memory of details that expand the reader’s understanding and portrayal of the setting and the real-life characters are used to excellent effect—creating a believable and realistic story. This is one of the best books on the Vietnam War and the brown-water Navy that I’ve ever read. I rated it five hearts.
Title: Dog Tags of Courage
Author: John C. Burnam
Illustrator:
Publisher and/or Distributor: Lost Coast Press
Pages: 352
ISBN: 1-882897-88-9
Price: $29.95
Publishing Date: 2005
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating:
The roles of dog handlers and scout dogs during the Vietnam war are like so many other sad stories from that conflict. The handlers were there in combat for a year or less and the dogs stayed behind, waiting for their next assigned handlers. These valuable German Shepherds were used to walk on point with their handlers during infantry patrols in the thick jungle. The service they provided saved many friendly lives. It’s unfortunate that they, like some of our POWs, were left behind to die ignominious deaths. This is their story as told by one of their handlers. We rated it four hearts.
Title: Julie & Julia
Author: Julie Powell
Illustrator:
Publisher and/or Distributor: Little, Brown and Company
Pages: 320
ISBN: 0-316-10969-X
Price: $23.95
Publishing Date: Sept 2005
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating:
This is a true story about a young lady who decided to cook all 524 recipes in Julia Child’s “Mastering the Art of French Cooking” in 365 days. The author writes with a very frank, funny style. This is as much about how the author grows from this experience as it is about cooking in a cramped New York apartment. The language is adult level. We rated it four hearts.
Title: The Taxidermist’s Son
Author: Ralph Scherder
Illustrator:
Publisher and/or Distributor: Rock Spring Press
Pages: 205
ISBN: 0-9765686-1-6
Price: $21.95
Publishing Date: 2005
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating: 3 hearts
This is a multifaceted story about how a young man followed in his father’s footsteps as a taxidermist. Although it includes the cultures of hunting and fishing in America, it also addresses the factors involved in following an unusual career path because it became part of a life-style. We rated this book three hearts.
Title: Teenagers Guide to The Beatles
Author: Z. Lalani
Illustrator:
Publisher and/or Distributor: AverStream Press
Pages: 216
ISBN: 0-96587-407-9
Price: $24.95
Publishing Date: 2005
Reader: Bob Spear
Rating:
This biography is written for the teens of today in an attempt to explain who and what the Beatles were and their influence on the rock music scene through the years. It includes information on their pre-teen years and follows them through their development as musicians, the formation of their group, and the absolutely weirdness of their lives as their freedom became increasingly affected by the dangers of their too exuberant fans.
The author has put together a tastefully done book which keeps its storytelling to appropriate levels for teens. I was a rock musician in the timeframe of their rise to popularity, yet there were many things I learned from reading this book. It is comprehensive and portrays an understanding of the Beatles that is obvious from the start. We rated it a high four hearts.
