Category Archives: Books

“Wounding, Destruction, Despair, Healing, and Love”

Posted on October 9, 2010 by Kathy

Millicent Monks gives new, horrifying meaning to the term “sandwich generation.” Her memoir Songs of Three Islands: A Story of Mental Illness in an Iconic American Family describes being caught between mentally-ill parents and a daughter with borderline personality disorder. … Continue reading →

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Wilder Indians

Posted on August 21, 2010 by Kathy

After reading and blogging about two of my old Weekly Reader Book Club books (here and here), I moved on to another children’s book that I knew made reference to Native Americans. I never read Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books as a child, … Continue reading →

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The Far Frontier

Posted on August 7, 2010 by Kathy

So I pulled out another favorite Weekly Reader book that over the years I’ve muddled in my mind with Fear in the Forest (see previous post). Written by William O. Steele (illustrated by Paul Galdone), The Far Frontier takes place … Continue reading →

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Fear in the Forest Redux

Posted on August 4, 2010 by Kathy

At Half Price Books a while back, I ran across a pristine copy of Fear in the Forest, an old Weekly Reader favorite of mine, complete with its original cover. I purchased it for $10.00 and intended to give it to … Continue reading →

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Jane Austen and BPD

Posted on June 28, 2010 by Kathy

It’s true that after writing about my mom and researching borderline personality, I’m inclined to see the disorder lurking behind every frowning face. But I can’t go so far as to diagnose Mrs. Norris of Jane Austen’s Mansfield Park (which … Continue reading →

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BPD in Fiction

Posted on June 1, 2010 by Kathy

Speaking of books, I recently finished 36 Arguments for the Existence of God by Rebecca Newberger Goldstein. Despite the title, it’s a novel, and also despite the title, it’s an argument for atheism, the latest salvo in the New Atheism … Continue reading →

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Serfer Girl

Posted on May 31, 2010 by Kathy

During summer break, I usually take on a long novel or two. One of my book groups is reading Persuasion, which I have to finish by mid-June and better get hold of pretty quickly. A great perk working at CSU is … Continue reading →

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Good Books

Posted on March 24, 2010 by Kathy

I went through a dry spell for awhile, where nothing I read knocked my socks off. Then I got lucky and happened across a couple of good reads. Michael Chabon’s essay collection Manhood for Amateurs: The Pleasures and Regrets of … Continue reading →

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Outliers & Sages

Posted on February 24, 2010 by Kathy

I’m having fun discussing Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers: The Story of Success with my SAGES class at CWRU. Gladwell has suffered some backlash from people criticizing his numbers and methods and his popularizing approach to complex topics, but some of those … Continue reading →

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A Valentine

Posted on February 14, 2010 by Kathy

Mrs. Morgan’s tenth-grade English class changed my life in a number of ways. “Maybe once in a very great while,” she would tell us, “you write something perfectly the first time.” Then, smiling empathetically, she would add, “That doesn’t happen very … Continue reading →

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