“The Quartet” by Joseph Ellis

• DougInNC book report – – – “More than a Review”

“four men made history happen in a series of political decisions and actions that … have no equal in American history.”

“When in the course of human events” it becomes you to rediscover roots formed in the 1700s that, of necessity, must hold firmly to be the foundation of these United States, this book is to be examined.

Historian and writer Joseph Ellis finds a comfortable place employing more drama than a typical professor and factual stickiness when a playwright or screenwriter might come unglued. He leverages his own prior work as well as “standing on the shoulders of giants” that have traipsed this historical period. His story builds strength, then gushes with maximum content and consequence as chapter five covers the drama of the 1787 Constitutional Convention and particularly the orchestration around that event by James Madison. Continue reading Book Report: “The Quartet” →

Maggie’s Dream – by Leslie Tall Manning

• DougInNC book Review

Author Manning quickly and crisply sets the stage, establishing the view from inside the title character’s head. Scene setting is terrific, with the writer clearly and consistently establishing who, what, when, and where. Her prose hearkens the time period using images of life in 1940s Baltimore and oft-forgotten brand names.

The confused Maggie of Chapter 3 faces uncertainty, saying, “It’s hard to know what I want when I haven’t had it yet.” The path to finding that core desire captivates the reader until she declares for “A life filled with magic and wonder.” Maggie lives before any Disneyworld dream, but Manning magically marshals vibrant visions in the heroine’s head. Continue reading Book Review: “Maggie’s Dream” →

Look Homeward, Angel– by Thomas Wolfe

• DougInNC book Review

Look Homeward, Angel is considered a great work of American literature. Yet, paraphrasing the author to describe this novel and the days I spent in it:

• “A book, not brief, a bore. … Time lost, O’ Lost!”

I usually enjoy descriptive prose and creative turn of phrase, but a novel ought to have a sufficient story to which those elements are attached. I did not find that story in this introspective on the author’s youth.
Continue reading Book Review: “Look Homeward, Angel” →

The Road from Courain – by Jill Ker Conway

• DougInNC book report
• “More than a Review”

Summary: “Cursed be my intellect, affluence, and robust life experiences because there may never be someone so exceptional as to live up to my image of myself.”
Continue reading Book Report: “The Road from Courain” →

Pretending to Dance, by Diane Chamberlain

• DougInNC book report
• “More than a Review”

“Good golly, Miss Molly.” That quote from my years growing up predates the years of our main character Molly. Another mismatch is that I am not the target audience for this novel. Neither of those aspects kept me from appreciating the work.

Good golly, Molly has issues; make that ISSUES. The antagonist of this story is Molly’s past, or as she clearly says, “My past is in my way, … a roadblock, holding me back, keeping me from moving forward. I have no idea how to make it go away.” Continue reading Book Report: “Pretending to Dance” →

Hamilton The Revolution – by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jeremy McCarter

• DougInNC book report
• “More than a Review”

Why am I effusive about Hamilton – The Musical, and certainly recommend a deep dive under the encyclopedic covers of “Hamilton The Revolution?” The answer has as many layers as the topic itself. As I peel them back, I’ll still maintain the whole is serendipitously greater than the sum of the parts.

Hamilton The Revolution is a book about a musical about a book about a man. Having read this book as a complement after seeing the stage action, my review conflates the two.

The hook for me: “words, words, words,” wrote Jeremy McCarter in chapter 28. Those words of which he spoke, nearly 22,000 in the production, grasped me by intermission of the stage show, securing the immediate and everlasting thought, “This is creative brilliance.” The book reinforces that, with more words about the exquisite weaving of words; there are brilliant pictures, too. Continue reading Book Report: “Hamilton The Revolution” →

I Wanna Be a Producer – by John Breglio

• DougInNC book report
• “More than a Review”

This book is far more entertaining than one might expect. It is certainly insightful on the topic of developing a Broadway show, and has a good level of detail without always diving into the nitty-gritty. John Breglio’s personal experience enlivens the subject matter with interesting and relevant tales.

What this book seeks to accomplish is to help one understand much about the theater that the fan never gets to see. It does that very well. Understanding “how the sausage gets made” is a compelling addition to the enjoyment and appreciation one absorbs from the audience point of view.

This is a remarkable business and the outsider has almost no sense of the time it takes to create a show, the costs involved, and the path to profitability. For those topics and many more, this book tells all. Continue reading Book Report: “I Wanna Be A Producer” →