As Jillian navigates her newfound luxurious lifestyle, her learning curve is humorous.  She is escorted in private jets, bought dazzling jewels and designer clothes, and has a full-time wait staff available to her every need.  The relationships between the girls appear sincere and friendly, but in actuality, they are competing not only for the prince's attention and affection, but also for the possibility of marriage.  And while the prince is busy or with other women, most time is spent waiting...Some Girls is a unique, potential fairy tale based on the oldest profession of all-time, prostitution.

Every family has their own folklore and reading Meir Shalev's family memoir sparked several memories of my own family's stories. You know the stories that you tell over and over throughout the years when situations bring them to mind. As Shalev says, they are true stories, but there are many additions, deletions, and exaggerations that different storytellers in the family tell. My Russian Grandmother and Her American Vacuum Cleaner is a loving story with digressions and explanations and yes exaggerations of what happened to Grandma Tonia and her American vacuum cleaner or sweeper as she called it. Grandma Tonia was not an easy person, she was obsessed with cleaning--no one was allowed into her sparkling clean house in the village of Nahalal, Palestine before World War II. She wore a cleaning rag on her shoulder at all times to prevent one speck of dust or mud (depending on the season) into her home. She wouldn't let the grandkids use the bathroom, she told them to go out and water a tree! To this day (the memoir was published in 2011) her family uses certain expressions of hers when they tell a story or talk about her. As she would say - This is how it was....The black sheep of the family, Uncle Yeshayahu went to America, sinful Los Angeles no less, and became a capitalist, instead of a Socialist and Zionist.  He would send checks but they always returned his "dirty money".  So he sent Grandma Tonia the newest biggest and fanciest American Vacuum cleaner on the market.  When it arrived the whole village turned out to see what it was.  The machine was as big as a cow and quiet as a cat.  The men thought it was stealth weapon from the decadent Uncle, the women secretly thought of the ease that it could bring to their hardworking lives.  Not Grandma Tonia!  She realized.... well I won't tell you!  I am sure everyone has a Grandma Tonia in their family;   a prickly person who can irritate and annoy but ultimately is loved and remembered with laughter.  So do you want to hear about my Uncle Louie and the polecat?  No?

Just Kids is a truly captivating memoir by punk musician and poet, Patti Smith.   Both Patti and Robert Mapplethorpe find themselves living in New York City in the late 1960's.  They develop an intense friendship, based on their mutual pursuit of artistic endeavors. The political and sexual climate of this counterculture period encourages them to create art and influence one another's work.  But they find themselves close to starving, and they depend on one another for emotional and financial support, eventually developing a romantic relationship.  

When they share a room in the infamous Chelsea Hotel, their neighbors and acquaintances consist of iconic figures, including Andy Warhol, Janis Joplin and Sam Shepard.  All of these people provide inspiration and motivation to these struggling, young artists.  Patti directs her energies to poetry and explores songwriting, while Robert gravitates towards photography. 

Throughout Robert's career, he is influential at promoting photography as a legitimate art form, and his explicit imagery is both shocking and revolutionary to the art field. 

Patti's memories of their shared adolescence are both heartfelt and tender.  She reveals intimate details about Robert's sexual escapades, which strained their relationship, and yet, also made their bond stronger. 

Robert passed away from complications from AIDS in 1989.  Before he died, Patti promised Robert that she would share their story, and she has completed an astonishing honor to his memory.  Highly recommended, one of the best books I've read in months.

True love is an allusive desire that many people aspire to.  When two people really click and love each other for a long time it is a magical connection.   Glenda and her husband, Ken, met after they'd both experienced tragedy and disappointment in love.  Ken was widowed twice at forty-four with one of his wives being brutally murdered.

Glenda moved to the Spokane area to be closer to her mother and met Ken at the firm they both worked in there.  Their relationship immediately faced challenges such as Ken's teenage daughter resenting Glenda and her mother skeptical about her daughter dating an older man with a teenage daughter.  From their first date, however, they found pleasure in each other's company.

Their loved endured over the challenges and they enjoyed many adventures together.  They especially enjoyed experiencing life to the fullest with a wide variety of dining out experiences, taking in the amazing outdoors, and raising their two children.  When Ken is diagnosed with lung cancer fourteen years in to their marriage they're devastated beyond belief.

Glenda must juggle a whirlwind of responsibilities while caring for Ken.  Caring for her children, caring for her mother who is also diagnosed with cancer, and figuring out how to cover all their bills all demand her time.  Ken bravely faces his disease while he and Glenda grab every bittersweet moment they can to enjoy each other's company. 

In Glenda's story of her husband's disease it's clear she still grieves for their amazing relationship, but also revels in the beauty of what they had together.  Her depiction of the trials she faced in keeping up with her duties of mother, writer, and daughter while taking care of her dying husband seem unthinkable.  Yet she did it with love, tenderness, and amazing emotional strength.  Their love was clearly the real thing.

The Autobiography of Malcolm X

Born Malcolm Little in Nebraska, young Malcolm endured years of foster care, when his widowed mother was sent to a mental hospital.  Malcolm went to live with an older sister in Boston, and took various menial jobs, eventually falling into crime (gambling, drug dealing, hustling and burglary).  His nickname in Harlem was "Big Red" and he was proud of his afro, and his resistance to the "conk".  This particular hairstyle for African American men was achieved only through the use of harsh chemicals, and Malcolm believed this hairstyle was an act of black self-degradation.  Malcolm was successful in his career of crime, until he got arrested for burglary and sent to prison for 10 years.

When he first went to prison, Malcolm was angry and full of hate; his cellmates even nicknamed him "Satan."  But upon discovering the prison library, Malcolm soon began devouring everything he could, in order to better educate himself, including reading the dictionary and practicing his penmanship.  He was introduced to the concept of Islam, and quickly adopted this philosophy.  Malcolm made parole in 1952, and went to visit Elijah Muhammad, the leader of the Black Muslims.  He ordained Malcolm as Malcolm X, and also as a minister, and he quickly rose in the ranks of leadership in the organization.

His aim was to advocate for Black Americans to separate themselves from white society, not integrate.  He urged African Americans to use violence if necessary against white attacks.   He stated, "I don't call it violence when it's self-defense, I call it intelligence."  

Alex Haley did a wonderful job of telling one man's story in an emotionally wrought, poetic and forceful manner.  I am glad to know more about this man's life.

Born in Southern Sudan to a loving, middle class family, Alek Weklived simply and happily in the company of her family.When civil war broke out between Southern rebels and a pro-Muslim government in Sudan, Alek and her family were forced to become refugees, leaving their home in order to escape same fate of the millions that were killed during the war.Eventually and with great difficulty, Alek and her family were able to secure refugee status in London. It was in London that Alek was "discovered" by a scout, but the road to becoming supermodel was a difficult one for Alek.If she did land modeling jobs at all, it was often to portray the "exotic black African" woman. Alekquickly grew tired ofrejections from editors and photographers based on the color of her skin. With the help ofher tenacious agent, Alek began put pressure on the industry to trulychangestandardimages of beauty.Today we know Alek as a famoussupermodel, but she is also a cultural hero and a survivor. Read more about Alek's amazing story inAlek:My life from Sudanese Refugee to International Supermodel]]> http://blogs.kcls.org/booktalk/2011/12/alek-my-life-from-sudanese-ref.html http://blogs.kcls.org/booktalk/2011/12/alek-my-life-from-sudanese-ref.html Inspirational Memoir & Biography Alek Wek refugee Sudan supermodel Thu, 08 Dec 2011 19:56:44 -0800 We are all aware of the damage and destruction a hurricane can bring even with all the advanced warnings and media coverage technology allows. But can you imagine what it would be like if there was absolutely no warning?

September 8,1900: Isaac Cline woke up to a hot but glorious day in Galveston Texas where he served as an agent for the U.S. Weather Bureau. Isaac received telegrams from the bureau telling of a tropical storm that hit Cuba and would cause heavy rains in Galveston-- nothing to be alarmed about. But the day felt wrong and Isaac worried that something was brewing. He was concerned for his pregnant bed-ridden wife and his three little daughters. As he glanced from the roof of his house towards the Gulf of Mexico, he knew something bad was coming. He alerted the Weather Bureau, but they told him not to worry, it was just a storm and Galveston was safe from hurricanes anyhow. Isaac did not agree and ran down the beach alerting as many people as he could before heading home.

Hours later the town was hit by torrential rain and winds clocked at up to 145 miles/hour. It was as if Galveston was placed in a plugged bathtub in a wind tunnel with the faucets turned on full. By the end of that day, an estimated 6 to 12 thousand people were dead. It is to date the deadliest natural disaster in the history of the United States. The town was completely destroyed. Railroads and trains where washed to sea, ships landed where homes used to be, and homes became life-rafts if the occupants were lucky.

I'm Over All That by Shirley MacLaine

At 77 Shirley MacLaine takes stock of her life by expounding on what's she's over and what she's not over. She notes that all of life is one bigplay and we're all the stars, directors, producers, and financiers of our own shows. Her tongue in cheek wit fills the narrative with great quips.

Even though she's recounting her own life it's clear she's sharing tips on what's important in life in general. Just reading a few chapters may lighten a person's load. Her fresh viewreads like a youth's perspective with an elder's wisdom.

Although she laments on many irritating things like politicians, pretentiousness, and the stress of being famous, she also remembers a lot of delightful aspects of life. Travelling, performing live, and relationships with high-powered attractive men are just a few. She also laments the difficulties in travelling under the current world conditions.

If you're in the mood for humor, wisdom and great storytelling Shirley will take you on a wonderful journey while giving you a glimpse of her own life movie. She points out that she's still writing, producing, and directing her life. After reading her musings it's clear that it has been quite a show at that.