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ASA'S STORY

Name: ASA'S STORY
Author: Gunnar Ohrlander
ISBN: 0-88282-041-9

A CHILD'S STRUGGLE, A FAMILY'S VICTORY AGAINST ALL ODDS

by Gunnar Ohrlander ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 30, 1991

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Ohrlander, Swedish journalist and playwright, takes a musing, hazy, sometimes rambling trip back to his daughter Asa's first year, in which she triumphs over cerebral palsy. The story is told in flashback by Asa, but since she was too young to have clear memories, she has supposedly gathered her information from the journals of her ``Mummy'' and ``Daddy.'' And herein lies one of the difficulties with the book—the wry observations made are ones too mature for a child of less than a year. Still, the writing is beautifully simple and crystal clear, with a childlike naivetÇ woven in. Set in late-1960's Sweden, the story begins even before Asa and her twin sister, Berit, are born. We met Gunnar, who writes revolutionary plays that a group called the ``Rabble'' performs, and his wife, a Maoist redhead with a tuft of green hair. Twins are born to them six weeks prematurely. When it becomes obvious after several months that Berit is developing normally while Asa lies in a peculiar stretched-out position, the doctors confirm the parents' fear that the child is a ``spastic.'' They decide to try a Czechoslovakian neurologist's revolutionary method of overcoming the baby's blocked movement. This ``Vojta'' method is simultaneously criticized and praised by the scientific community, and the parents agonize over whether they are doing the right thing, since opponents claim that the exercises, which allow other parts of the nervous system to take over and create normal movement by bypassing the brain, inflict extreme mental anguish upon on the child. The decision to proceed becomes even more difficult when Asa's parents see little progress. And the ending is a bit disappointing, as the story leaps from this time to five years later, with Asa able to cartwheel across the lawn but with no description offered of the time when she does start to improve. Still, a poignant recollection, rich with metaphor and irony.

Pub Date: Sept. 30, 1991

ISBN: 0-88282-041-9

Page Count: 298

Publisher: New Horizon

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1991

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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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

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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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.