"Rewrites" Book Review

Rewrites by Neil Simon
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

"Barefoot in the Park, The Odd Couple, Plaza Suite, The Goodbye Girl, The Out-of-Towners, The Sunshine Boys -- Neil Simon's plays and movies have kept many millions of people laughing for almost four decades. Today he is recognized not only as the most successful American playwright of all time, but also as one of the greatest. More than the humor, however, it is the humanity of Neil Simon's vision that has made him America's most beloved playwright and earned him such enduring success. Now, in 'Rewrites', he has written a funny, deeply touching memoir, filled with details and anecdotes of the writing life and rich with the personal experiences that underlie his work.

"Since Come Blow Your Horn first opened on Broadway in 1960, few seasons have passed without the appearance of another of his laughter-filled plays, and indeed on numerous occasions two or more of his works have been running simultaneously. But his success was something Neil Simon never took for granted, nor was the talent to create laughter something that he ever treated carelessly: it took too long for him to achieve the kind of acceptance -- both popular and critical -- that he craved, and the path he followed frequently was pitted with hard decisions.

"All of Neil Simon's plays are to some extent a reflection of his life, sometimes autobiographical, other times based on the experiences of those close to him. What the reader of this warm, nostalgic memoir discovers, however, is that the plays, although grounded in Neil Simon's own experience, provide only a glimpse into the mind and soul of this very private man.

"In 'Rewrites', he tells of the painful discord he endured at home as a child, of his struggles to develop his talent as a writer, and of his insecurities when dealing with what proved to be his first great success -- falling in love. Supporting players in the anecdote-filled memoir include Sid Caesar, Jerry Lewis, Walter Matthau, Robert Redford, Gwen Verdon, Bob Fosse, Maureen Stapleton, George C. Scott, Peter Sellers, and Mike Nichols. But always at center stage is his first love, his wife Joan, whose death in the early seventies devastated him, and whose love and inspiration illuminate this remarkable and revealing self-portrait. 'Rewrites' is rich in laughter and emotion, and filled with the memories of a sometimes sweet, sometimes bittersweet life."

It's true that this book is quite good. I enjoyed it. I thought it was funny.

Originally, I had picked it up because I thought I would learn something from it. There wasn't much to learn, except for a few things. Mostly that art imitates life and life imitates art. And I can understand why he had to be a writer to make money for his family. His few business endeavors never made any money.

While he's obviously a talented playwright, I felt there was nothing to be learned from his experiences because everything happened so fast for him. He wrote one play, got an agent that wanted to represent him right away, and then got a producer that wanted to produce his work right away. And then afterwards he was with him for most of the rest of his career. That's it, there was almost no struggle whatsoever. Like he was shot out of a cannon.

Now, I have yet to read his work, but I have heard of most of it and the commentary is almost always positive. There were a number of funny anecdotes about his small misadventures vacationing, working with crazy actors and a movie set full of crazy people. He has worked with legends of the stage and a few on the silver screen, but the only one I can remember is Bob Fosse, mostly because of his brilliant work ethic and because Simon mentions him so often in the book.

It gave me an odd chuckle every now and then, and the ending was terribly sad, but I don't think it's something that will stick with me.

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I give his book 3 of 5 stars.

"My Lobotomy" Book Review

My Lobotomy by Howard Dully
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

"At twelve, Howard Dully was guilty of the same crimes as other boys his age: he was moody and messy, rambunctious with his brothers, contrary just to prove a point, and perpetually at odds with his parents. Yet somehow, this normal boy became one of the youngest people on whom Dr. Walter Freeman performed his barbaric transorbital—or ice pick—lobotomy.

"Abandoned by his family within a year of the surgery, Howard spent his teen years in mental institutions, his twenties in jail, and his thirties in a bottle. It wasn’t until he was in his forties that Howard began to pull his life together. But even as he began to live the “normal” life he had been denied, Howard struggled with one question: Why?

“ 'October 8, 1960. I gather that Mrs. Dully is perpetually talking, admonishing, correcting, and getting worked up into a spasm, whereas her husband is impatient, explosive, rather brutal, won’t let the boy speak for himself, and calls him numbskull, dimwit, and other uncomplimentary names.'

"There were only three people who would know the truth: Freeman, the man who performed the procedure; Lou, his cold and demanding stepmother who brought Howard to the doctor’s attention; and his father, Rodney. Of the three, only Rodney, the man who hadn’t intervened on his son’s behalf, was still living. Time was running out. Stable and happy for the first time in decades, Howard began to search for answers.

“ 'December 3, 1960. Mr. and Mrs. Dully have apparently decided to have Howard operated on. I suggested [they] not tell Howard anything about it.'

"Through his research, Howard met other lobotomy patients and their families, talked with one of Freeman’s sons about his father’s controversial life’s work, and confronted Rodney about his complicity. And, in the archive where the doctor’s files are stored, he finally came face to face with the truth.

"Revealing what happened to a child no one—not his father, not the medical community, not the state—was willing to protect, My Lobotomy exposes a shameful chapter in the history of the treatment of mental illness. Yet, ultimately, this is a powerful and moving chronicle of the life of one man. Without reticence, Howard Dully shares the story of a painfully dysfunctional childhood, a misspent youth, his struggle to claim the life that was taken from him, and his redemption."

This was an inspiring and fascinating account of the medical community's atrocious practice and how it affected one man's life for over forty years. It is scary to think that this type of 'medicine' is used on children today for nefarious reasons. It really sucks that his stepmother was the evil stepmother seen in fairy tales, that his brothers were too skittish to talk to their own brother for years afterward, and that his own father wasn't man enough to admit that he was a terrible protector of his own flesh and blood. The whole community was at fault there. But at the end, he found his way to be happy in life and that is the part that counts, for him anyway. As for the rest of us, we need to make sure this type of stuff doesn't happen to the following generations of children. Seriously recommend this book! Also: Hilary Mantel's "Giving Up the Ghost: A Memoir" is very similar and a good read, though sad.

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"History of A Suicide" Book Review

History of a Suicide: My Sister's Unfinished Life by Jill Bialosky
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was so sad, as you can imagine just by reading the title. The pain in these passages of grief has cured me of any desire or thought of an unnatural end for myself. I would never in a million years want to place that blame, sorrow, aching horror on anyone I know. As for the suicide note, for me, there would never be enough time or words to explain to the people in my life what they have meant to me and to thank them for what they have done for me. I'd much rather be with them in the long run and to tell them myself if I plucked up the courage. I'll still have depression, for a while at least, and it may be crippling some days, but I'll fight it. This may have been TMI for many people who might read this review, but this book has touched me and inspired me to be stronger than I am now. It is a shame to learn it from the pain someone else had and still is experiencing from a loss that can only be explained through possibilities and "what ifs" because the central figure is no longer there to say why it happened and why for them it couldn't have been helped or stopped.


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"Backstreet Mom" Book Review

Backstreet Mom: A Mother's Tale of Backstreet Boy AJ McLean's Rise to Fame, Struggle with Addiction, and Ultimate Triumph by Denise I. McLean
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

SPOILERS!


It was a very quick read. It was interesting but not heart-wrenchingly dramatic or very inspiring. It was kind of a play-by-play of events but without a lot of details. It has my respect for that because I don't want to be stuck reading a pity-party book, if you know what I mean. Everything sounded very panicked and crazy and exhausting at times, but it wasn't really put together like a readable novel. While I would befriend Ms. McLean, I wouldn't name her a salable writer.


Don't expect a lot of juicy gossip though. Ms. McLean kept the book about her life and her son's. While management is mentioned and Lou Pearlman was dragged through the mud (as he deserved) and Jive Records was trounced (again, deservedly so) and overly creepy managers were mentioned as well, there isn't a whole lot of the crazy that everyone seems so intent to find out about. Jane Carter is mentioned, I think, twice. The other boys families, girlfriends and bodyguards aren't really mentioned a whole lot. They were always sort of classified as other and not necessary to the story.


The boys were mentioned, obviously, and she seemed to have a real affection for them though at times she seemed very hurt by their lack of respect. I think Nick was mentioned the least, while Kevin was mentioned often. He was the one more likely to have a fight with someone because of his temper and he seemed the most moral of the group. I found that surprising because he seems so stoic most of the time. I also found it surprising that Brian has a temper as well because he's always such a goof and seems so happy all of the time. Howie was the most humble and most likely to not have a fight or have a conflict with anyone and he sounded like everyone's favorite mellow fellow. Alex/AJ was obviously the most mentioned. A few of his girlfriends and bodyguards are mentioned by name and Kevin's girlfriend Kirsten was mentioned once or twice.


The McLeans family was mentioned a lot, because family was very important to them. And sadly, one of them passed away while AJ was at his most vulnerable.


The most emotionally driven part of this book was towards the end when AJ is in rehab. That part was very painful and it showed through the writing.


The ending is a bit corny and it makes me wonder if it was the one time the author decided to stretch the truth in the entire book, but it did make me smile for the McLeans.


Not a favorite book, but interesting.


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"What You Wanna Know" Book Review

What You Wanna Know: Backstreet Boys' Secrets Only a Girlfriend Can Tell by Samantha Stonebraker
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Very short and quick read. Those boys were so cute! Too bad it's too late to get to any of them, what with all but Nick married. lol Oh well.  It's a cute book and I honestly don't remember her saying anything bad about any of the boys, more about their management.


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