A thoughtful entry to the Lerner Biographies series, on the often controversial American playwright and memoirist. The strength of Turk's work is in her wonderfully effective use of Hellman's memoirs—readers hear the distinct, vivid voice of Hellman as a child, adolescent, and finally an adult. Turk covers all the usual highs and lows of this sometimes troubled woman, with her searching talent and strong political convictions. She does not gloss over Hellman's long-term relationship with the hard-drinking suspense novelist and screen writer Dashiell Hammett or of their commitment to liberal and leftwing causes. Also thoroughly covered is the inevitable showdown with the House Un-American Activities Committee. This is a well-paced, involving work, further enlivened by the ample use of high quality b&w photographs and interesting captions. A welcome addition to an authoritative and lively collection of biographies. (bibliography, index) (Nonfiction/biography. 9+)
Pub Date: May 10, 1995
ISBN: 0-8225-4921-2
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Lerner
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1995
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The Hemingway name will carry this beyond what the usual casual interest in reminiscences of hunting in Africa would ordinarily achieve. It contains some of the best writing Ernest Hemingway has done — and is a delightful human document, natural, humorous, graphic in the swift characterizations and the original sidelights on his companions. Game hunting in Africa — with a double urge, to get, first and last, a Kudu — and to beat Karl. Sell both as travel and sport — as well as good Heminway. Appearing in Scribners Magazine.
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1935
ISBN: 0684801299
Page Count: 308
Publisher: Scribner
Review Posted Online: Oct. 7, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1935
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An eye-opening glimpse into the attempted self-unmaking of one of Hollywood’s most recognizable talents.
The debut memoir from the pop and fashion star.
Early on, Simpson describes the book she didn’t write: “a motivational manual telling you how to live your best life.” Though having committed to the lucrative deal years before, she “walked away,” fearing any sort of self-help advice she might give would be hypocritical. Outwardly, Simpson was at the peak of her success, with her fashion line generating “one billion dollars in annual sales.” However, anxiety was getting the better of her, and she admits she’d become a “feelings addict,” just needing “enough noise to distract me from the pain I’d been avoiding since childhood. The demons of traumatic abuse that refused to let me sleep at night—Tylenol PM at age twelve, red wine and Ambien as a grown, scared woman. Those same demons who perched on my shoulder, and when they saw a man as dark as them, leaned in to my ear to whisper, ‘Just give him your light. See if it saves him…’ ” On Halloween 2017, Simpson hit rock bottom, and, with the intervention of her devoted friends and husband, began to address her addictions and underlying fears. In this readable but overlong narrative, the author traces her childhood as a Baptist preacher’s daughter moving 18 times before she “hit fifth grade,” and follows her remarkable rise to fame as a singer. She reveals the psychological trauma resulting from years of sexual abuse by a family friend, experiences that drew her repeatedly into bad relationships with men, most publicly with ex-husband Nick Lachey. Admitting that she was attracted to the validating power of an audience, Simpson analyzes how her failings and triumphs have enabled her to take control of her life, even as she was hounded by the press and various music and movie executives about her weight. Simpson’s memoir contains plenty of personal and professional moments for fans to savor. One of Kirkus and Rolling Stone’s Best Music Books of 2020.
An eye-opening glimpse into the attempted self-unmaking of one of Hollywood’s most recognizable talents.Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-06-289996-5
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Dey Street/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2020
PERSPECTIVES
BOOK TO SCREEN
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