![]() ![]() Flashbacks illuminate the boys' difficult childhoods: illegitimate, they never knew their father diffident, gentle Thomas was verbally and physically abused by their bullying stepfather, who also terrorized their ineffectual mother. The book opens with a horrific scene in which Thomas slices off his right hand, declaring it a sacrifice demanded by God. ![]() ![]() Narrator Dominick Birdsey, once a high-school history teacher and now, at 40, a housepainter in upstate Connecticut, relates the process that led to his twin Thomas's schizophrenic paranoia and the resulting chaos in both their lives. The narrative explores the theme of sibling responsibility, depicting the moral and emotional conundrum of an identical twin whose love for his afflicted brother is mixed with resentment, bitterness and guilt. But thanks to well-sustained dramatic tension, funky gallows humor and some shocking surprises, this sinuous story of one family's dark secrets and recurring patterns of behavior largely succeeds in its ambitious reach. The topics it unflinchingly explores-mental illness, dysfunctional families, domestic abuse-are rendered with unsparing candor. Some may be daunted by its length, its seemingly obsessive inclusion of background details and its many digressions. This much is true for sure: Lamb's second novel (after the bestselling, Oprah-selected She's Come Undone) is a hefty read. ![]()
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![]() ![]() ![]() All that I was being told and what I read, was so eye-opening. I took notes in the margins, I underlined sentences here and there. ![]() Anderson’s book which I previously mentioned, and I couldn’t get enough of it. I scored well on my finished essay, but I still wanted to research this subject more in depth, outside of school. Craving for more information, I ordered the book off Amazon. Anderson, and I read that he had written a book: When Harry Became Sally: Responding To The Transgender Moment. After some search however, I came upon an article written by Ryan T. Being against the opinion that transgenderism is right, I had a hard time finding people and opinions that I could cite back to (which is practically necessary, in an APA-style essay.). I had to write an APA-style essay on my stand of Gender Dysphoria. Anderson is the author of the book “ When Harry Became Sally: Responding to the Transgender Moment“.Īs I took psychology last year, I began to research more in depth, transgenderism and the brain physiology behind it. ![]() ![]() ![]() The entire family, including a grandmother in traditional dress, gathers to say grace and dig in: “Rice goes in the middle/ Egg goes right on top / Mix it!/ Mix like crazy!/ Time for bee-bim bop!” Lee’s characterizations don’t have much texture or depth, but he does a terrific job of framing the kitchen activity from a variety of angles, so that every scene bubbles with fun and anticipation (he also frequently crops Mama at the shoulders, to keep the focus on the eager, helpful narrator). First, the necessary supplies are laid in: “Hurry, Mama, hurry/ Gotta shop shop shop!/ Hungry hungry hungry/ for some bee-bim bop!” A flurry of rice-making, chopping and frying follows. (The words in Korean mean, loosely, "mix-mix rice.") The title also inspires some bouncy rhymes from Park (A Single Shard), and loving depictions of the joys of being mom’s sous-chef from South Korean artist Lee. “The title refers to a dish of rice, egg strips, vegetables, and meat that's a staple of Korean family life-and it's a lot of fun to eat, too, because diners get to mix the parts together themselves right at the table. ![]() ![]() ![]() "It's like when you find that amazing piece of chocolate-you take a bite, and it sits on your tongue and melts into a pool of liquid heaven: Florand has managed to capture that emotional experience and put it into the pages of her novel." - RT Book Reviews " comfortable beach read. Every chocolate I've made since I met you, I've made for you.'" -Eloisa James, NPR.org The Chocolate Thief is for days when you lust not for wisdom, but for a bar of chocolate-at any price-and a hero who understands what is truly important: 'Every dream I have has you in my apartment, has you in my laboratoire, has you with my babies. Whether confections taken from a locked shop or kisses in the dark, is there anything sweeter? Not unless there's something much more delectable on the table. But turn them over to a brash American waving a fistful of dollars? Jamais. ![]() Melting, yielding yet firm, exotic, its secrets are intimately known to Sylvain Marquis. For American Cade Corey, it's a dream come true, if only she can get one infuriating French chocolatier to sign on the dotted line. ![]() ![]() When an American heiress and a French chocolatier butt heads, the business of chocolate is about to become a labor of love in this romantic comedy.īreathtakingly beautiful, the City of Light seduces the senses, its cobbled streets thrumming with possibility. ![]() |