BOOK REVIEW

Title: Lost in the Forest

Author: Sue Miller

In ten words or less: A sudden death affects all members of a family.

Review: Eva is happily remarried, with two daughters by her ex-husband and a small son with her current spouse John. When John is killed in a car accident, the family is thrown into chaos. Eva draws closer to her ex-husband, little Theo doesn't believe his daddy is gone forever, and teenage Daisy is drawn into a sexually abusive relationship with the husband of her mom's best friend. There is graphic sexual description and not the happy ending expected, but characters come to terms with their losses.

Why bother? Fans of domestic fiction by authors like Jane Smiley and Anne Tyler will appreciate the emotion in this story of a family torn apart.

BOOK REVIEW

Title: Bookmarked to Die

Author: Jo Dereske

In ten words or less: Humorous mystery featuring humorless librarian solving crimes at work.

Review: Helma Zukas is a 40-something librarian with a relationship with the Chief of Police Wayne Gallant and a suspicious stray cat she has never named. Her library director feels Helma isn't a team player, and orders her to attend a series of self-improvement workshops. And when she organizes a program on local authors, one of them is murdered afterwards. To top it off, her cat is kidnapped and Chief Gallant's ardor is cooling.
This is not the strongest entry in the Miss Zukas series but it's good to see her back.

Why bother? Mystery 'lite' features a likeable if prickly librarian who likes to keep her relationships on a professional level.

BOOK REVIEW

Author: Jane Heller

Title: Some Nerve

In ten words or less: Humorous romance between celebrity journalist and the actor she stalks.

Review: As a celebrity journalist at "Famous" magazine, Ann Roth is about to lose her job unless she can come up with the big interview with reclusive actor Malcolm Goddard. After a disastrous attempt to bribe her way into his favor, he agrees to an interview when she threatens to publishe a not-quite-truthful story about him. But her phobia of flying prevents her from showing up for the interview.
When Ann is fired for not obtaining the story, Ann heads home to small-town Missouri until she can find another job. But surprise! Who shows up but Goddard, checked into the local hospital under an assumed name. A little too much mean spirited deceitin this story to make it totally enjoyable, but a quick, glitzy read for those who enjoy "People" magazine.

Why bother? If you want a smar, celebrity-packed romance, this is it. Not one of Heller's best, but since Olivia Goldsmith's death, Heller leads the pack when it comes to witty romances with plenty of glam.

Jane Heller's website is at http://www.janeheller.com

MOVIE REVIEW

Title: Good luck

Review: Vincent D’Onofrio and Gregory Hines

Seattle Seahawks star receiver Anthony “Olee” Olezniak (D’Onofrio) receives a life-altering injuring during a game—he is blinded by a freak spinal cord injury. After almost a year, he hasn’t adjusted at all to his blindness, and when his ex-lover writes a tell-all book about him, he flies into a rage and throws his furniture out the window.
Geeky dental technician Bernard Lemley, who was paralyzed when a drunk driver ran into his car weeks before his graduation from dental school, was Olee’s biology tutor in college. He asks Olee to go on a whitewater rafting trip with him, to prove that gimps can do challenging outdoor activities. Olee feels he is being used because of his celebrity, but agrees only if Lem agrees to no publicity until after the trip.
Olee complains to Lem at the outset that he hasn’t been to a party, had an erection, or a decent bowel movement since his accident. There is crude toilet and sexual humor here, and a flash of tits at the beginning of the movie, but D’Onofrio and Hines have great chemistry and the buddy story clicks. One of my favorite actors from “Barney Miller,” Max Gail, appears as a marijuana farmer. I borrowed this film from the library, and enjoyed it enough to purchase the DVD.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"When women write about sex it's called erotica. When men write erotically it's called the sports page.
--Lisa Beth Kovetz, Publishers Weekly, September 9, 2006

MOVIE REVIEW

Title: A Prairie Home Companion

Folks who haven’t listened to “A Prairie Home Companion” won’t get the in-jokes, so I can’t speak for them. But I’m a big Lily Tomlin fan, and she and Meryl Streep were spot-on as the aging gospel singing sisters. I can’t say I’ve ever seen Woody Harrelson in anything other than a couple of episodes of “Cheers,” but I laughed so hard at his comedy routine with John C. Reilly, I had tears in my eyes. And the jokes were real groaners! But Harrelson’s expression is what did it for me. That sly grin and the look of innocence that precedes a joke that should have been left unspoken. And Keillor is Keillor—pretty much the same on screen as he is on radio.