Freed for Life by Rita Nightingale

A young Englishwoman visiting Japan, Rita Nightingale was working as a hostess in a Tokyo restaurant when she met a Chinese businessman.  Though the nature of his business remained somewhat vague, his grace and seeming rectitude convinced her it must be above board.  Only later, with time to brood in her prison cell, would she trace those stratagems he had planned, almost certainly before their first meeting. 
  
Following a fairly brief courtship, he proposed marriage.  Rita agreed with joy, glad to have met such an attractive, reliable man.  Once their marriage had been decided upon, he suggested they fly together in order to bring her parents their news.  When Rita acquiesced, he said, as his bride-to-be, he could not allow her to travel with the casual suitcases she had owned as a tourist.  He would buy her elegant cases suitable for a businessman’s wife.

Shortly before their flight, he claimed an emergency had arisen regarding his work which would prevent his joining her.  Aware she felt disconcerted at having to travel to her parents’ home without him, he persuaded her to go anyway; he would be at her side at the first moment he could be.  Meanwhile, a colleague she had come to trust would travel with her.  Then, suddenly, this colleague became unavailable too. By then, despite feeling deflated, Rita took the flight.
  
Having reached the Bangkok Airport where a change of planes was meant to take place, Rita found herself under arrest.  At first she felt sure there was some mistake which could easily be resolved.  How could the substantial amount of heroin she was accused of carrying have been found in her baggage?  The only two people, aside from herself, who had access to her suitcases, had been her fiancee and his colleague.  

When the police failed to reach her fiancee, she pleaded with them to drive her to the hotel where his colleague was staying.  Once there, this colleague, looking at Rita in seeming bewilderment, asked her, “Who are you?”

In fact, who was she? Given every reason to view herself as the soon-to-be wife of a businessman, Rita Nightingale found herself sentenced to twenty years in a Bangkok prison. Then, when her case became publicized, she was visited in prison by Christian ministers.  At first, their advice seemed completely nonsensical…

I recommend this book which is a fascinating account of faith and forgiveness and a riveting read.

Child of the Jungle by Sabine Kuegler

Full title: Child of the Jungle: The True Story of a Girl Caught Between Two Worlds by Sabine Kuegler

It is hard to conceive of two more divergent worlds than those inhabited by the Kuegler family.  The parents, missionaries from Germany, wish to live among an Indonesian tribe, the Fayu, in the depths of the jungle.  To the extent feasible, they strove to live in the same conditions as did their tribal neighbors, while adhering to the hygienic and sanitary standards of western societies. 

Thus, their hut, despite efforts at cleanliness, was subjected to the same insect and rodent infestations as were those around them.  Instead of the usual childhood ailments, the Kuegler children caught malaria from the omnipresent mosquitoes and bats.
In terms of customs, the Fayu maintained clan blood feuds which continued for decades.  Though marriages could be agreed with tact, it was not unusual for a girl of twelve or thirteen to be abducted and kept as a bride.  Parents might not see a daughter for years if her kidnapping husband forbade it.

Eventually, they took a vacation to Germany.  Increasing tribal wars had begun to render their lives among the Fayu more arduous.  
Initially, the children felt restrained by the seemingly stringent rules of their grandparents’ home.  Then, somewhat to her surprise, once back in Indonesia, Ms. Kuegler began to yearn for the freshly-brewed coffee, her grandmother’s home-baked bread, and the over-all comforts of modern life in a European country.  At the same time, Violence among the Fayu became ever more menacing.
Ultimately, the Kuegler’s agreed their children should grow towards adulthood in Europe, where they were likely to settle.  Therefore, heart-wrenching as they were at leaving friends they had known nearly all their lives, the Kuegler’s left Indonesia.  

Lovely Me: Life of Jacqueline Susann by Barbara Seaman

Jacqueline Susann born August 1918 died September 1974 was a renowned American author famous for her novel "Valley of the Dolls"

For decades, literary snobs-I have at times been among them-have felt some chagrin at admitting to liking/admiring the work of Ms. Susann.  Still, a recent BBC production of her best-known novel, Valley of the Dolls, indicates growing awareness of her ability as a writer of both credible characters and the social commentary their lives provide.  In short, this book chronicles the gradual transformation of a genuine, sensitive, strong young woman into a resignedly pill-popping member of New York’s celebrity circles.

What of “Jackie” Susann herself?  The title Lovely Me stems from a comment she made when, as a young actress, seeing her mirrored silhouette during pregnancy, she wondered aloud how her thickening waist and abdomen could have happened to “lovely me.”  This musing was written into a song in an upcoming musical. 

Still, as the author Barbara Seaman shows, her life, like her body, failed to retain its loveliness.  Her novels, despite or because of their stellar success, were relegated to an area just above semi-porn. During her marriage to Irving Mansfield, she had a son at a level of the autistic spectrum which required long-term residential care. 

Then, in January 1974, she was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer.  Though only in her mid-fifties, she knew she had just a few months to live.  When she went to see her son for what she knew would be the last time, she told him she would not be able to visit him anymore.  Perhaps not comprehending the depth of her words, or due to the detachment often characteristic of autism, he simply waved, as if she had said she would be back on the following Friday.

Jacqueline died on September 21st 1974.  For the last seven weeks of her life, she was in a coma.  Her final words were to her husband Irving, “Hiya, doll, let’s get the hell out of here.”  
Those of us who have been touched by her work can only hope she got the hell out of this earth after only minimal suffering.  

Up Close: Harper Lee; A Twentieth-Century Life by Kerry Madden

Given the eminence of her novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” a modern American classic, it is surprising how little has been written regarding its author, Harper Lee.  This renders Kerry Madden’s biography a joy to those who, like myself, both love and revere this novel, and the film made there-from.  

Perhaps the dearth of knowledge regarding Ms. Lee is rooted, in part, in her lack of self-publicity.  While glad of the recognition her book received, she seems to have lacked the egoism of other such writers. 

Prior to writing this work, she had helped fellow writer Truman Capote in researching his book In Cold Blood.  She seems to have had a deep interest in crime and its consequences.  

The performance of actor Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch, a lawyer defending a falsely accused Afro-American man, did much towards enhancing public knowledge of this book.  Later, when Peck was asked why he had not played such roles after that, he said it was because Harper Lee had not written more books.

Many have wondered why she became what some authors are unjustly dubbed “one book writers”.  Apparently, despite her success, her later efforts were not welcomed by potential publishers.  Still, she does not seem to have become disheartened. As Kerry Madden points out, Harper Lee said what she wished to say in one book.  She did not sink into the tempting quicksand of repetition which absorbs some authors.  Hence, she left humankind one exquisite gem of achievement. 

Lady Blue Eyes by Barbara Sinatra

Frank Sinatra born December 12th 1915 died May 14th 1998

Full Title: Lady Blue Eyes: My Life with Frank Sinatra by Barbara Sinatra

Despite the plethora of material written about this iconic singer-actor, Barbara Sinatra’s memoir is an essential part of his history.  As his fourth and final wife, she became privy to aspects of his life he concealed from others.  Though still in his late prime when they married, she observed the growing vulnerability of illness and age behind his determination to maintain his bravado.  

She does not deny he could be irascible-even a bit of a brute towards those who irked or frustrated him.  Still, he was capable of extreme generosity, even when aiding comparative strangers.
Though pleased with being called “Old Blue Eyes”, Sinatra detested frequent references to him as “Chairman of the Board”.  As he said, once one is chairman, how much higher could anyone go?  We all, however eminent, have the need to retain the ability to aspire.
  
When Barbara became Mrs. Sinatra, she knew their marital privacy would be in constant jeopardy from the press and public.  She was not prepared, however, for their merciless hounding.  Its predatory nature was such that she feared they would try to shoot photos of him on his final journey to a hospital.
   
Now, years after his death, the moment she leaves his grave side, onlookers pounce upon flowers and tender notes she has left there.  Still, in a positive sense, this prying mirrors the impact the quality of his music and reverberations of his “my way” lifestyle imprinted themselves both on his era and undoubtedly a generation unborn at the time of his passing.  

Elia Kazan: A Life by Elia Kazan

Elia Kazan

Nearly always, at the end of reading a memoir, I feel some rapport and kinship with its author.  This proved only marginally true in the case of Elia Kazan’s autobiography.  
Those with an interest in films now considered classics, and celebrities such as Marlon Brando, Arthur Miller and Vivien Leigh will find a trove of insights and anecdotes here.  

Sadly, given his fine directorial skills, Kazan gave the names of various colleagues and friends during the House Committee Against Un-American Activities, (HUAC) during the 1950s’ McCarthy hearings.  Kazan strives to justify this betrayal, by his loyalty to the American government, based on its having allowed his family, including himself as a boy, to escape the tyrannies practised in Constantinople by the Ottoman Empire, shortly before the First World War.  Still, the fact remains that information he provided wrecked the careers of others, in a successful effort to shield his own. Almost all of us can understand, with reluctance, the survivalist instinct which impelled these betrayals.
  
Kazan becomes truly offensive when, having recounted pretending to like someone more than he did as part of a seduction, along with countless infidelities to wives, he asks, with grating repetition, “But reader, have you not done the same ?”  
As such a reader, I ached to respond, “No, Kazan.”
  
While few of us have lived flawless lives, many of us do not find it acceptable to lie and deceive as part of our human condition.  He becomes even more distasteful when attributing his constant bedding of renowned beauties to his having been so poor, as a university student, as to be forced to wait on tables for the upper-class students as part of his tuition.  Demeaning as this may have been, the repetition of this shame soon begins to pall, as it leans towards a rationale for hedonism.

Slaying the Dragon by William L. White

Slaying the Dragon: The History of Addiction Treatment and Recovery in America by William L. White

Alcohol and tobacco, in various forms, has been interwoven throughout English and American culture for centuries.  Indeed, the otherwise prim and proper Queen Charlotte, wife of King George 111, enjoyed chewing snuff.

In this book, we are shown the increasing awareness in early America of the dangers of drinking, and to a lesser degree that of tobacco.  While the development of the recovery process proved gradual, it did progress to the point where, today, drug and alcohol rehabilitation is accepted and often applauded by recovering addicts and those close to them.

This book is often poignant in its depiction of some of the bases for decisions to overcome the dragon of substance abuse.  This is especially true of the founder of one of the first self-help groups Dr. Henry A Reynolds.  The look of sorrow and resignation in the eyes of his wife as she sat at the window as he staggered towards their home after yet another drink-sodden night was more painful to him than would have been the fiercest rage or rebuke.  Those eyes also mirrored his knowledge of his own utter debasement, planting determination to free them both from their growing despair.  He succeeded in doing so.  

Treacherous Beauty: Mark Jacob & Stephen Case

Treacherous Beauty: Peggy Shippen, the Woman Behind Benedict Arnold's Plot to Betray America by Mark Jacob and Stephen H. Case.

In order to secure readership, many books dealing with history need titles which hint at an alluring degree of female seductiveness and deceit.  In fact, this book is a well-researched historical study of the marriage between Peggy Shippen and Benedict Arnold.

In historical terms, Arnold will always be an ambiguous figure. 
American school texts portray him as a traitor to early revolutionaries. Conversely, the British view him as a trustworthy subject of the English king.  As with so much of life, there can be no definitive answer; viewpoints depend on a reader’s individual societal background and framework. At any rate, this book explains Arnold’s reasons for his change in loyalties, consequent to what he viewed as an unwarranted court martial.  

As to his wife Peggy, while she clearly knew, supported and seems to have facilitated his plan, she was far from those seductive enchantresses portrayed in history and literature as undermining the honor of those men they enthrall.  Instead, she was a wife, remaining loyal after enduring the hurt of infidelity, a concerned and devoted mother, and in the end, a widow, struggling through her last days with meager support from anyone. 

Over-all, Treacherous Beauty, the first biography to have been written about this Peggy Shippen Arnold, combines absorbing characterizations with a new and unexplored avenue of understanding. 

All the Way Home by Bookey Peek

This delightful book chronicles Bookey and Richard Peeks’ experiences in running a wildlife sanctuary.  Much of their work centers on helping injured birds and animals, or those who have been abandoned while too young to look after themselves.  
The Peeks’ goal is to prepare them to return to their natural habitats.  
Though feeling some sadness when this occurs, they respect its necessity.  As Ms. Peek writes, the most punitive act we as a society can inflict upon another, aside from a sentence of death, is continuous confinement.  This pertains as much to bird and animal lives as it does to those of human beings. 
She also recounts the habits and despicable manners of some guests to the sanctuary.  Arguably, to the best of their understanding, many creatures from the wild behave with a greater degree of grace and decorum than do some of their human counterparts.  

War Brides by Lois Battle

War Bride 1943 London

Nearly always, I read nonfiction, unless a novel is suggested by a friend with similar interests.  Thus, it was by accident that I began Lois Battle’s novel War Brides.  Hurrying through a bookstore, I bought it on the basis that the subject sounded intriguing. 

While not a war bride myself, I left my home in France to marry a delightful Englishman, and have never felt the slightest regret. Still, we both needed to adapt to each other in subtle but definite ways, both emotional and cultural.

At any rate, so absorbed did I become in War Brides that, for days it lay open on my bedside table; I did not look at its title page. Then, given the interweaving of lives and the realistic but magnificent dialogue, I took a look at its title page which identified it as a novel.  By then, I was too intrigued by the book to close it due to its being fiction.

War Brides chronicles the lives in America of three brides who left Australia for America, often after the briefest of WWII courtships.  Once the enchantment of candlelight fades, each partner in every such marriage must deal with the less than enchanting aspects of someone they had almost deified in the flow of their fantasies. 

When dreams and champagne are damaged by defeats and the lowest grade beer and wine, each couple is forced to evaluate whether it is worthwhile to continue their impetuous unions.