Book Reviews
In this book, William Seraile explores the history of New York’s colored orphan asylum. It was the first orphanage for colored children, one of the few places that would take them. It was founded by the wives of rich and famous white men. The women felt that they could turn these colored children into good, hard-working members of society; they didn’t want them to aim farther than their position in society allowed. In its long troubled history, mainly financial trouble, the orphanage went through several changes and helped many children until it closed its doors in the mid-20th Century. This is a well-written book. It explores a side of New York that is not known to many people. It brings to life the children of minority parents and their experiences. The only quibble with this book is that it becomes bogged down with names. Reviewed by Kevin Winter Breakfast at the Exit Cafe: Travels Through America By Wayne Grady, Merilyn Simonds Greystone Books, $16.95, 256 pages Journeying from British Columbia without a definitive route into America, husband and wife collaboration Wayne Grady and Merilyn Simonds write an enlightening, exploratory travelogue. What they see in Selma, Albuquerque, Eureka, Escalante, Jefferson, Athens, the Grand Canyon, and Route 66 is cleverly illuminated through an outsider’s lens. In one memorable discussion of Georgia O’Keefe and Alfred Stieglitz’s creative partnership, Simonds reflects, “I am happy when Wayne goes off to join a scientific expedition to China, or Patagonia, or the North Pole. I can’t wait for the private time those trips allow me, yet I rarely carve out that solitary space for myself.” This honesty permeates the narrative and allows Simonds to seamlessly expose the relationship between America and Canada through her own. She gallantly suggests that “a little time alone” might help these countries get along. We learn about Grady’s fascination with the Redwoods and the fear of facing his own African American ancestry in the Deep South, while Simonds reveals her idiosyncrasies, her delight for hash browns and parades. Their perspective is balanced, rich
History
with literary references, anecdotes, and history as they discover the local food, scour used book stores, and explore the idea of the American Dream. Reviewed by Wendy Iraheta Fade to Black: Graveside Memories of Hollywood Greats, 1927-1950 By Michael Thomas Barry Schiffer Publishing, $24.99, 160 pages Fade to black is indeed an illuminating collection of short memoirs about the academy awardees of cinema during the golden age of film from 1927 to 1950. Starting at the end of the silent films, this period continued to the dissolution of the studio system with the passing of the imperious movie moguls. Hollywood was the celebrity center of the entertainment world and while many films were produced, some still remain as classics that set the tenor for the movie industry. With the academy awards serving as the focus, Michael Thomas traces the careers of the academy awardees for almost a quarter century and follows them to their burial sites. While this may sound ghoulish, this quest is done in the effort to pay homage to these megastars, whose memories remain imprinted on the film world. This is a book that will appeal to movie buffs and all those viewers of ancient film classics who are too young to have seen these stars in their heyday, as well as those of us who recall these personalities with reverence. The classic Norma Shearer beat out Gloria Swanson for best actress in the 1920’s. In the following decade, so many remembered names like Lionel Barrymore, Marie Dressler, Frederic March, Helen Hayes, Charles Laughton were awarded best thespian honors for their gender. Among directors, Frank Capra, John Ford, and John Huston. along with others, stand out. And who can forget the poignant Judy Garland as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz and if you follow her genealogy tree, she shares a branch with Ulysses S. Grant. Continue on with the familiar names of the indomitable Bette Davis, Olivia de Havilland, Greer Garson, Jennifer Jones, Laurence Olivier, Ronald Colman, Clark Gable, Gary Cooper, Vivien Leigh. More recently, but still in the past, the iconic Bing Crosby and Ingrid Bergman, who shocked the country with her independent life style and survived the furor her affairs aroused. Read the book to recapture the magic that these, and so many more, brilliant players bequeathed to the public. The author draws a compassionate composite outlining the careers and influences
of the Academy awardees. Like the rest of us, the stars experienced the joys and tragedies so characteristic of life. We see them at their most radiant, but they too underwent the vicissitudes of time and fortune. Reportedly, their deaths are recorded as due to cardiac attack, strokes, cancer, accidents, suicide, and natural aging processes. Remarkably, now nonagenarians, the famous feuding sisters Joan Fontaine and Olivia de Havilland are living quietly in separate locations. Reflecting the black and white of this film era, the text is fittingly grey toned with wonderful reproductions of the stars in their glory and finally accompanied by photos of the gravesites. Each of the luminaries is succinctly described, from birth to film career tidbits and family life. There are tasty morsels of gossip peeking at the peccadillos of some of the stars, which makes them all the more appetizing. This charming recollection of movie greats captures the history of the cinema along with the mixed personalities that endowed it with greatness. It is fitting that we smile in tribute to their memories by reviewing their contributions. This is our inheritance and one that the reader will enjoy. Sponsored Review Alameda County Fair (Images of America Series) By Victoria Christian Arcadia Publishing, $21.99, 127 pages A jockey rides high in the saddle, moving up through the pack in the last turn. Suddenly, an opening appears as his mount breaks around the outside. The thunder of hooves brings the crowd to its feet, cheering wildly as the long-shot surges to the front to win by a nose. What began as a ranching family’s love of horse racing evolved into one of the most exciting summer events in the country. Most Bay area residents don’t need directions to find their way to Pleasanton for the annual Alameda County Fair. Victoria Christian recounts the history that officially began in 1912, in anticipation of the upcoming centennial celebration next summer. Christian emphasizes the main attractions – exhibits, rides, contests, wine tasting competitions, livestock shows – but focuses on the central feature: the horse races. This Pleasanton tradition has endured even during the war years when the fair itself was canceled. With more than two hundred captioned photographs and a detailed map of the fairgrounds,
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Christian brings us so close to the festivities that we can almost taste the cotton candy. Reviewed by Casey Corthron Indigo: In Search of the Color That Seduced the World By Catherine E. McKinley Bloomsbury, $27, 256 pages Who doesn’t have a favorite color? Colors can symbolize different things to different people. For author Catherine McKinley, her color is blue. And not just any shade of blue – indigo. One might say she has an obsession with indigo, and her obsession takes her on a journey across Africa. What she learns of indigo’s origins isn’t always a happy understanding of her most revered color. Indigo: In Search of the Color That Seduced The World is the result of her journey, but it doesn’t read like research. Rich with heritage and history, it reads like other genres full of mystery, tragedy, history – even romance. Readers will be drawn into the allure of indigo, as I was, through the pictures of the exquisite dyed batik fabrics that capture the unique beauty of indigo within their very fibers. Little did I know the rich history of this beautiful color, which is derived from the small green leaf of a parasitic shrub. What it represented to me is now bolstered by a greater understanding and appreciation for its roots. Reviewed by Laura Friedkin US Small Arms in World War II: A photographic history of the weapons in action (General Military) By Tom Laemlein, Dale Dye Osprey Publishing, $35, 247 pages A cigarette dangles from his lips as he gazes over the bayonet tipped M1 Garand. Grizzled-faced from days of battle, another soldier holds his BAR at the ready. Beside him with the thousand mile stare of an ole warhorse, another hikes up his Grease Gun in anticipation while the youngest among the four crouches low with his Springfield. Gun collectors and weapons enthusiasts will appreciate Laemlein’s photo selection in this coffee table book of World War ll veterans in combat with their tools of the trade. These high gloss black and white action shots include rarely seen images of an OSS soldier on patrol with a Johnson rifle. From handguns to the M55 Browning fifty caliber machine gun, and everything in between, these photographs bring back the past. “...there was nothing small