The Women of Duck Commander, by Kay Robertson and her daughters-in-law

There is probably no family in America right now as popular and beloved as the Robertsons of West Monroe, Louisiana.  Their A&E TV show, Duck Dynasty, has set ratings records, and their books and merchandise are everywhere.  Now fans of the show can learn all they ever wanted to know about the lives and loves of Kay and her daughters-in-law.  In The Women of Duck Commander: Surprising Insights from the Women Behind the Beards About What Makes This Family Work, Kay, Korrie, Missy, Jessica, and Lisa tell stories of their childhoods, family histories, courtship, marriage, and lives as Robertson women.

The Robertsons have invited TV cameras into their homes and lives for several years now, putting their lives on display, so it's not surprising that they lay bare so much of their personal lives in this book.  Some of the stories they tell are pretty ugly.  The patriarch, Phil, spent many years early in their marriage as a drunk, and nearly tore apart their marriage and family with his terrible lifestyle.  But Kay was patient, and Phil met Jesus, transforming his life.  One of the daughters-in-law had an affair, but they chose reconciliation over divorce, and their marriage ended up stronger.

That hope and transformation forms the real theme of this book.  Each of them reveal personal stories of some bad choices they and the Robertson men have made, but in every case a commitment to family, a dependence on Jesus, and a hopeful outlook sustained them and redeemed their lives.  Duck Dynasty viewers will learn a side of this family that they might only have seen hints of on the show.  Everyone who picks up The Women of Duck Commander will be inspired by this close-knit family who enjoy each other, love their lives, and show a deep commitment to one another.

I did enjoy getting to know these ladies, but I should make a couple of objective comments, in order to be most helpful to interested readers.  The narrative jumps around among the authors.  Each time the voice changes, it's clearly indicated, but I got a little lost sometimes, having to remind myself who was writing when.  For fans of the show, this will be less of a problem; many fans know the Robertson family tree as well as they know their own!  Similarly, the stories they tell are very personal, but much of what they write would probably be of interest only to fans.

As you might expect from a book tied to a TV show, The Women of Duck Commander is essential reading for fans.  Those who are not familiar with the show will read some amusing and inspiring stories of family life, and good reminders that keeping Jesus first and each other second is a key to strong families.  But for non-fans, reading this would be like reading a whole bunch of Facebook posts from people they don't know.



Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

Plastic, Ahoy!, by Patricia Newman and Annie Crawley

Perhaps you have heard of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, where plastics that have been dumped off of boats, washed down rivers, or tossed on the beach have gathered in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. In Plastic, Ahoy! Investigating the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, author Patricia Newman and photographer Annie Crawley ride along on a scientific expedition whose purpose is to examine the garbage patch and evaluate its effect on sea life.

One thing that may surprise you about what they found is what the garbage patch is not.  If you picture it as a gigantic bundle of bottles and other recognizable plastic refuse floating like an island in the Pacific, you're wrong.  (So, contrary to the story line of this graphic novel, no one will be able to establish a colony on the garbage patch.)  There are, of course, bottles to be found, but for the most part the plastic has been broken down into tiny bits and pieces, suspended a few inches below the surface.

Newman and Crawley describe and illustrate the tasks of several members of the expedition while discussing the patch and its potential importance.  The presentation is quite balance, avoiding the hyperbolic scare tactics one might expect from a children's book about an environmental mess.  But they do make very clear that this patch has the potential to do some serious damage to the ecosystem, even at a distance of thousands of miles from land.

Plastic, Ahoy! doesn't shy away from introducing complex language and ideas, and includes a glossary, bibliography, and suggestions for further reading.  It would be appropriate for older elementary school readers and older.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

Stay Where You Are and Then Leave, by John Boyne

Sometimes the best wisdom and perspective on adult issues is best received from the point of view of a child.  Many know John Boyne's work from the moving story of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, which was made into an award-winning film.  In his new book, Stay Where You Are and Then Leave, Boyne tells the story of the home front in London through the eyes of Alfie Summerfield.  He says he remembers the start of the war better than most, since it was on his birthday, and put a damper on the celebration.

The ruined birthday party was only the beginning.  His father signed up and went to the front.  His neighbor and friend, who was born in London and lived all her life down the street from Alfie, but whose father was from Prague, was sent to a relocation camp on the Isle of Man.  His mother worked a double shift at the hospital.  His male teachers went to war, so retired teachers came to fill in.  To help out his mother, who said they are "perilously close to penury," Alfie skipped school several days a week to shine shoes at the train station.

At first, Alfie's father wrote letters from his training camp, then from the front.  Alfie's mother said the letters stopped because his father was on a secret mission.  But Alfie discovered disturbing letters that his mother had hidden, giving a bleaker picture of the war and of his father's state of mind.  When he learns that is father is in a hospital a train ride away from his home, he makes it his mission to bring his father home.

Boyne powerfully communicates the horrors of war, not through graphic descriptions of life and death at the front, although he does touch on that, but through his portrayal of life at home.  It has been 100 years since the outbreak of World War 1, but Boyne reminds us, in a timeless way, of the lessons of that conflict, and the human story of families touched by the terrible finger of war.  This is a book written for young audiences, but, like much great children's literature, deserves to be read by adults as well.


Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

Someone Else's Wedding Vows, by Bianca Stone

Disclaimer: I don't read a lot of poetry.  Does that make me unqualified to review a book of poetry?  I don't know.  I see poetry as lyrics without music, a chance to saw something in a way that transcends the limits of prose, and to offer turns of phrase that force the reader to examine the lenses through which he or she reads.  Bianca Stone's new collection of poems, Someone Else's Wedding Vows, does just that, but left me a little flat.

These poems contain snippets of powerful imagery, and snapshots of insight, but didn't congeal into much coherence for me, either individually or as a collection.  I was reminded of a song with a few good riffs but that never really goes anywhere.  Someone Else's Wedding Vows felt a little like someone else's stream of consciousness, or someone else's inside stories to which I am not privy. 




Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

Big Fat Beautiful Head, by Stu Heinecke

You may have seen Stu Heinecke's cartoons in the Wall Street Journal.  He's got great insight and wit, and distills some his best in his new book, Big Fat Beautiful Head: A Book of Cartoons by Stu Heinecke.  Each of the 50 cartoons is accompanied by a few sentences of background, explanation, or (sometimes only marginally related) commentary.

The sly humor of his cartoons combined with the personal, political, and economic points of view he reveals in the commentary make me think Stu would be a great guy to shoot the breeze with.  Speaking of breezes, you'll breeze through this book.  But Stu is a marketing guy; he'd probably agree that you should always leave the customer wanting more.  You will definitely want some more laughs from Stu.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

How to Fight Presidents, by Daniel O'Brien

In case you were wondering what you would do if, by some remarkable coincidence, you manages to travel backwards through time, and, for some reason, found yourself face-to-face with a U.S. president and felt the need to fight him, well, you are in luck.  Daniel O'Brien has your answer.  In How to Fight Presidents: Defending Yourself Against the Badasses Who Ran This Country, O'Brien examines the strengths and weaknesses of our commanders-in-chief, and gives some tips on how to defeat each.

The first thing to understand is that every president is crazy.  You'd have to be, to want the job.  "The desire to be president is a currently undiagnosed but very specific form of insanity."  With that in mind, O'Brien tells stories from the presidents' lives to show how crazy, how strong, how smart, how headstrong each is.  Although I get the feeling O'Brien did a great deal of historical research, he does play fast and loose with the truth, and his use of hyperbole distracts from the actual facts.

For example, he states that the story of Washington's wooden teeth "isn't technically true.  In truth, it wasn't his teeth, it was his testicles, and it wasn't wood, it was stone-cold steel."  But his stories of the hardships suffered by various presidents, and the strength of body, mind and will to overcome them, are pretty inspiring, even if occasionally padded.

My one disappointment is that he doesn't cover any living presidents.  I would be curious to see how he would treat our wimpy presidents Carter and Obama.  O'Brien seems pretty liberal, so he would probably find some reason to laud them (Carter can swing a hammer, after all).  I'm also disappointed he didn't spend at least a couple of chapters on presidential throw downs.  Reagan versus Ike, Teddy Roosevelt versus Ford, something like that.

All in all, this is a funny book with lots of historical (and, alas, certainly a few pseudo-historical) tidbits.    (By the way, it's funny, but rated-R funny.  Please don't order a bunch of copies for your kid's social studies class.)



Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

The Global War on Christians, by John L. Allen, Jr.

American Christians like to talk about the culture wars and the persecutions they suffer.  Every year, especially around Christmas time, we hear about the horrible abuses Christians face, like having a creche removed from a courthouse lawn display, a child forbidden from passing out "Jesus Loves You" pencils at school, or a city council member who is asked not to say "Jesus" in his council meeting invocation.  These are certainly worthy of discussion in our pluralistic society, but John Allen brings light to what can more truly be described as persecution.

In The Global War on Christians: Dispatches from the Front Lines of Anti-Christian Persecution, Allen tells story after story from around the world of Christians killed for their faith, of churches firebombed, of pastors assassinated, of Christian aid workers killed, and on and on.  So the city is prohibiting your church from building that much-needed parking garage because of zoning issues?  At least your church isn't being attacked by gunmen when you meet.  At least you have a church to meet in!

Allen, a correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter, tends toward coverage of persecution of Catholics, but he certainly includes protestants as well.  In fact, he makes a great point: persecution brings Christians together.  The "ecumenism of the martyrs" causes Christians of all stripes to share common cause; when a church is attacked or a clergyman killed, Christians are inclined to share in their concern no matter what theological differences they might have.

Reading The Global War on Christians is rather overwhelming.  Allen gives page after page of examples of persecution, with names, dates, and places identified, and most within the last 10-15 years. A few of these make the mainstream news, but for the most part, unless they are attached to a larger conflict, they go unnoticed by the rest of the world.  Persecution is a real, persistent problem, and Allen is right to draw our attention to it.  As the back cover of the book says, "It's time to wake up."

One quibble I had with Allen was his attribution of persecuted status to Christians who were killed for apparently non-religious reasons.  When a person of faith opposed a political regime, confronts hostile business interests, or in simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, that didn't seem to me to fit the model of religious persecution.  But Allen points out that persecution is a two-way street; the motives of the persecuted and of the persecutors should be considered.  Perhaps the government couldn't care less what the religious faith of an anti-government activist is, but the activist may be driven by his or her faith to oppose government policies.

I am grateful to be able to practice my faith without government or other opposition.  Allen reminds me and other complacent, comfortable Western Christians to pray for and support our persecuted brothers and sisters around the world.

Thanks to Waterbrook/Mutlnomah for the complimentary review copy!