Chelz

Entertaining Stories from a Master Storyteller

Revisado: 12-30-22

The stories are short and leave you wanting more, but they are filled with memorable characters and interesting dialogue.

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Psychological Intrique

Revisado: 06-21-22

This was my 3rd book from Maugham and I did enjoy it. He excells at developing charcters and their toxic relationships. I really enjoyed how the narrator plays himself (the author). It made for an unique perspective and it was one of the many things I liked most about the book. At times, the dialogue does go off into lengthy philosphical and religious discussions as one of the main characters relates his experiences with various holly men, especially towards the end of the book. If you like Maugham's style of writing, give it a read. The narrator was excellent!

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A True Classic

Revisado: 06-06-22

This was my second book from W. Somerset Maugham. I tried The Painted Veil and liked it so much I decided to try a longer piece from the same author. The characterizations are superbly done. Although most of the characters are thoroughly unlikeable, I found I looked forward to finding out what happens next. The story held a lot of psychological intrique for me. So much of human behavior is just unexplainable and Maugham is able to skillfully illustrate with rich vobaulary and precisley drawn descriptions this oddity. There were parts that dragged primarly in the sections dealing with art and artsits and their correspinding philosophies of life or trying to find the meaning of life, but overall the book is a classic. The narrator did an outstanding job, too

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intrguing Story

Revisado: 06-06-22

The summary/overview of the book's plot did not interest me, but I decided to listen to it as I wanted to try one of the works by W. Somerset Maugham. It is a relatively short book at 7 hours. This book really captivated me. The characters were so keenly described and the dialogue is rich. The main female character undergoes subtle changes throughout the book. Although none of the characters were all that likeable they were believeanle and authentic. The narrator was very skiiled as well. I enjoyed this book so much I moved on to Of Human Bondage, Short Stories Volume 1 and now am listening to the Razor's Edge.

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The Book

Revisado: 03-21-22

A recent trip to Savannah Ga inspired me to read this title. It is often referred to in Savannah as The Book and the Mercer House is a very popular spot on the tour cycle. The book is an easy read. There are many colorful characters throughout the book. The narrator is splendid at assigning different voices to the numerous characters. The book is heavy on gossip, rumors and scandals. I was much more interested in the tidbits scattered though the book of the history of various houses, districts and neighborhoods of Savannah. Some of the events in the book are true, some are not true and some have been exagerrated. The absolute best thing about the book is the attention ( and tourists dollars) it brought to beautiful Savannah.

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Fascinating Observation of the Confederacy

Revisado: 03-20-22

A reference in Moxley Sorrel's book Recollections of Confederate Staff Officer put me onto this title. I admit I was pretty lost for the 1st chapter while Freemantle was traveling through Texas and my not having any background on Texas during that time period. Once Freemantle leaves Texas and travels though Mississippi and Louisiana I was hooked. He gives very detailed descriptions of the soldiers he encounters including their articles of clothing and manner of speaking. Of interest is the various means of transportation Freemantle undertakes to get from Point A to Point B. Despite being in the midst of a Civil War, almost everyone Freeemantle encounters in the Confederate states are exceedingly civil and gracious sharing horses, gear, food, etc. He touches on slavery throughout the book, to which he is very opposed. He describes the dresses of the women he encounters ( slave, white and free black), the conditions of the towns, the landscape, weather, trains, etc. Freemantle's minute details of several high ranking Confederate officers is engrossing. He spends considerable time talking about the war horses ( as does Moxley Sorrel) a topic quite sad and largely ignored. He managed to be present at several significant points in history ( Gettysburg & the Draft Riots in NYC) His description of the Union soldiers, officers and townspeople in the northern states are in sharp contrast to the southerners. I really like this book and recommend it to anyone interested in the Civil War.

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Fascinating Account of a Staff Officer

Revisado: 03-20-22

I had not heard of Moxley Sorrel before a trip to Historic Downtown Savannah where I walked past his beautiful boyhood home identified by a Ga Historical Marker. The home itself has been saved by reinventing itself as a haunted house for the tourist trade. I am a history buff and recently began reading books on the civil war. I prefer books that provide first hand accounts.
(Company Aytch by Sam Watkins & Memoirs of a Confederate Scout & Sharpshooter by Berry Benson) so was interested in reading Sorrel's book.This book is different in that it is from a staff officer at the highest level in the Confederacy. Sorrel gives detailed but brief sketches of many of the well known Confederate high ranking officers - both personality and physical appearance. The various rivalries among officers are very interesting as are the reactions of President Davis, Lee and Longstreet to the feuds. Sorrel gives descriptions of numerous townspeople who came to the militay camp to complain and Longstreet's reaction to the locals grievances. One thing I especially enjoyed in this book were the horse stories. The importance of horses in the Civil War and their often dreadful fate has often gone unnoticed. Due to a reference in the book to a visiting British Officer, I am now reading Three Months in the Southern States by Capt. Freemantle. Sorrel's book is an easy read, quite well written and insightful. I recommend it to anyone interested in the civil war.

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intrguing Plot

Revisado: 03-20-22

This was my first book by the author. I enjoyed it well enough to read her other books. The book held my interest throughout. It is a realatively short book so easy to get through in a few days time. I tend to favor books written in the first person and this book offered that advantage. I would have prefered each character remaning in the first person account, but that didn't happen. The son, Tom, and the two police officers are told in the third person. The main leads ( Jill, Bridget, Audrey) are in the first person although in the begining they are also in the third person. I do like that the story unfolds from the different character's perspectives, but it would be more coherent to keep all the accounts in either the the first or third person. The story goes back and forth between current and past events, but there are dates so that is fairly easy to keep straight. I have read some reviews stating they couldn't get past the plot's premise of an older woman marrying her own son's killer. That didn't bother me. What did irritate me was Jill and Robert's extremely disfunctional marriage and their motives to remain married as a divorce isn't a stigma anymore. Overall, I did like the book. I knew the ending was heading in a certain direction, but it isn't obvious until the very end. The narrator was ecxcellent!

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Intriquing Stories

Revisado: 02-13-22

I am embarrassed to admit I had never heard of Flannery O'Conner until a recent visit to Savannah, Ga. Her childhood home is in the beautiful historic downtown area along with a placard outside. I have not read any books similar to Flannery O'Conner's style. The stories are quite unique in the characters, plot and settings. I was raised in the deep south and the dialogue, expressions, jargon, phraseology of the characters in the short stories are spot on. The stories are all rather dark with unlikeable unrepentant characters that are entirley repulsive and yet I really enjoyed the book! Many of the stories are open ended with no clear ending either and you are left wondering what happened next. I want to read O'Conner's other works after finishing A Good Man is Hard to Find.

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Sad but Compelling Story

Revisado: 10-21-21

I was intrigued by the movie so decided to read the book. There are stories within stories in this book very cleverly woven together. The story of Maude’s friend Elizabeth who is missing, the story of Maude’s sister Suki who went missing in 1946 and the story of Maude herself and her daughter and granddaughter experiencing the heartbreaking process of dementia. My mom had Alzheimers for 12 years. Often she spoke as if she were a child again. This book helped me understand what it might be like to be in her head. I’m not sure the book appeals to everyone but it definitely will resonate with family members who have close up personal contact with dementia.

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