Bethany D

Bethany D

I'll read just about anything. Hey, Cosmo is considered reading! I'm on a history kick right now and have been reading up on wars and things that I'm kind of ashamed I don't already know much about (don't know much about Vietnam, and don't even ask me anything about the World Wars!).
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  • member since Tuesday, January 22 2008

Profile: Reviews

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  • Flags of Our Fathers: Heroes of Iwo Jima (Young Reader's Abridged Edition)
    • Rated 4 stars

    I made the mistake of seeing the movie after reading the book and now my love for the book is tainted by my disdain for the movie. The book shines such a brilliant light on the lives of the flag-raisers before they were famous that it brings the brutality of war hauntingly close to home. That is the whole point of the book: to show that these national heroes were just boys in another lifetime. The movie shamefully misses the point entirely. If you've seen the movie, I fear you'll be ruined for the book. "Flags of our Fathers" ignited in me a desire to know more about the people who fight our wars, not the policymakers or the battle plans. It is a frightening reminder of how every soldier, on our side or not, is someone's son.

    Bethany D wrote this review Wednesday, February 13 2008. ( reply | permalink )
  • An American Requiem: God, My Father, and the War That Came Between Us
    • Rated 1 stars

    I'm sure this is a wonderful look at the toll war takes on family life, but I didn't get far enough to find out. I really wanted to love this book, but it moved too slowly and finally lost my interest.

    Bethany D wrote this review Wednesday, February 13 2008. ( reply | permalink )
  • Freddy and Fredericka
    • Rated 5 stars

    My favorite Helprin book; before this book came out, my favorite was "Memoir from Antproof Case" -- I love Helprin's mastery of the absurd. "Freddy and Fredericka" can tiptoe on the line, almost crossing over into preposterous, but Helprin reigns it back in so it's just pleasantly ridiculous.

    Bethany D wrote this review Wednesday, February 13 2008. ( reply | permalink )
  • Rough Music (Ballantine Reader's Circle)
    • Rated 4 stars

    I just finished this and my heart is breaking for the characters. It's dark and dreary, much like the English seaside that's such a focal character in the story. I wanted to reach into the pages and shake the characters and tell them to stop standing in the way of their own happiness. Frances is the most tragic character, but the author so beautiful revives hope through her children. It may be too late for her, but the children can correct their mistakes before it's too late for them too. I think I need a shot of sunshine after reading this book, but I must be a glutton for depression because I can't wait to start my next Patrick Gale book.

    Bethany D wrote this review Wednesday, February 13 2008. ( reply | permalink )


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