Engaging, if slightly superficial, essays on modern life from the perspective of a military spouse and mother.
A collection of essays by a U.S. Marine Corps wife explores a wide range of topics, from Star Trek to the family cat.
This book comprises 46 short essays, written in the “exasperated housewife” tone popularized by newspaper columnist Erma Bombeck, whom Diersen (Thinner Skin, 2014, etc.) cites in the essay “I Heart John-Boy” as one of her favorite authors. Previously published on Diersen’s online blog, the essays are divided into six sections. “On Children and Parenting” and “On Marriage and Relationships” contain stories from the author’s life as the wife of a Marine officer (referred to in the text only as “the Jarhead”) and the mother of two grown children, dubbed El Noblé and Princess Primrose. Other sections, like “Obsessions, Confessions, and Possessions” and “On Politics and Culture,” explore Diersen’s thoughts on such varied topics as favorite commercials, the emotional issues of the family cat, and gay marriage. In almost every case, the author employs a light, even glib, narrative style to deliver a sincere and thoughtful message. For example, “My Sci-Fi Fantasy,” which enumerates the five items of Star Trek technology she “wouldn’t mind having,” ends poignantly by placing at the top of the list Dr. McCoy’s cure for kidney disease so that she could alleviate her aunt’s need for dialysis. Similarly, “Pot Luck” expands a humorous account of a Georgia police raid on an okra farm they mistakenly believe is growing marijuana into a brief analysis of unjust drug seizure laws. Readers may tire of Diersen’s relentlessly perky tone, and there are some instances of dark humor that risk becoming alienating, such as in “The Limits of Togetherness,” in which she speculates on the ways her husband might murder her, given half a chance. But the majority of the essays are personable and entertaining, and Diersen concludes with two examples of her fiction, a short story and a novel excerpt, that pique the reader’s interest in her other works, including the novels Unmatched (2012) and Thinner Skin.
Engaging, if slightly superficial, essays on modern life from the perspective of a military spouse and mother.Pub Date: Nov. 29, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-692-56055-6
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Blue Gentian Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 22, 2016
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
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
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