N. Belle

Rob Lowe can add "superb storyteller" to his resume with this book. He keeps your attention, in many instances, he leaves you astonished at the twists and turns of his life. You may find yourself asking, "how was he there in that place?" For someone under the age of 50, he has been close to events and people who have made a significant and lasting impact on our times and culture essentially by being a good-looking actor who has taken on astonishing roles that were not "lost" on him. He gives a great accounting of his life at many vantage points from his 5-year-old childhood impressions to his "brat pack" celebrity and into the clarity of adulthood. This is a very interesting and absorbing read from a most unexpected source.

I bought this title because I wanted something that wouldn't "engage" my brain much and wouldn't require any thinking on my part. I was not disappointed. This book is vintage Danielle Steel and this book is pretty light. Within 5 paragraphs, you know the entire story. There are no surprises as every character is quite predictable. This book reminds me that Danielle Steel has a template on her word processor where she fills in the characters' names with the same plot over and over.

The reader, Ms Angela Dawe, is average and doesn't add or take anything away from the story. I don't think that she could have done very much with this anyway. This book is OK for lounging around the pool or napping without missing anything. You can fall asleep for an hour, wake up and know exactly what happened while you were asleep.

Did Ms Steel achieve anything with this novel? Well, if you start this book with no expectations, you will be rewarded otherwise, this isn't going to impress you very much.

I found myself laughing non-stop with this. Samuel L. Jackson has done a masterful job with some very funny prose here. Loved this.

I probably should have expected that anything with the word "patriot" in the title would get a bit preachy and this lived up to my expectations. I enjoyed the choices of documents but I didn't need as much "commentary" as this book provided. Certainly, I am happy that I am educated enough to enjoy the documents and draw my own conclusions but this might be better titled "Some Essential Documents for Americans". Still, it was a nice July 4th listen with the fireworks going off in the background.

I thought this book would be predictable but the twists and turns kept my attention. I found myself "thrilled" and "chilled" with some of the dialogue here. I would have liked to see the ending better developed but this was a great summer light read. Patterson and Ledwidge did a very good job with this book and kept me interested chapter after chapter. I even found myself "talking to the characters" at times. Good read.

This was a great book up the point where the author started talking about his "human" side. The memoirs are nicely described; the scenes are set and realistic but the psycho-drama comes up sorely lacking and should have been left out. I am all for personal growth and "getting inside your own head" but this book didn't do that very well.

I came away appreciating all that the men and women in uniform do for the country. I came away with great admiration for the sacrifice and continuous pursuit of excellence of the elite of the armed forces but just about 3/4ths of the way through this book, it flopped miserably and never got back on track. Fortunately for us, the first 3/4ths is well worth the price of the book.

Mr. Brooks presents a great and insightful look at typical Americans. He shows a common-sense ability to "call a spade, a spade" without "political correctness". He has a clear communication style that lends itself well to the spoken word as well as the written word. Mr. Brooks presents examples of how ordinary people make their way under a variety of conditions. There are some practical tools for success presented as well as some examples of how many people find themeselves questioning so-leaders who are more self-promoting than actually leading. This is an excellent book for anyone who has more than a passing interest in human nature and in modern American culture. Mr. Brooks is an excellent observer with great insight.