Goodrich, a journalist growing restless with his life, fell upon the idea of building a car from a kit as a “visceral declaration of independence” from the everyday. He settled on the Caterham Super Seven, “based on a 1957 Lotus design.” His quest required a not inconsiderable commitment: the kit and the various necessary additions to it (including, for instance, a motor) added up to an investment of some $27,000. Even knowing that “kit-car builders are shadowed by error and calamity,” he plunged in. And in a discursive and generally charming narrative, he describes how, through an excited process of trial and error (and the advice of an experienced hand with the Seven), he eventually succeeded not only in building the car but in racing it, and learning “through my hands, in my marrow, that the journey, made rich by attentiveness and appreciation, matters far more than the destination.” Automotive fans are likely to find the tale engrossing; those interested in the origins of the do-it-yourself spirit may find Goodrich’s musings and the subject intriguing, and his frequent detours into everything from automotive history to philosophy are refreshingly frank and iconoclastic. (illustrated)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1998
ISBN: 0-06-019193-7
Page Count: 224
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1998
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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