Sum It Up by Pat Summitt

Pat Summitt: Amazing Coach
Remarkable Woman

Thanks goes to Lisa Hailey for recommending this memoire.

I was not familiar with Pat Summitt. I don't watch NBA basketball, nor do I watch college ball. Truth be known, I don't really know the difference between a basketball and a beachball. So coming to this book, I was entirely unfamiliar with the notoriety of this woman and her incredible dominance in the field of women's college basketball.


Here's a summary thanks to GoodReads.com:

Pat Summitt was only 21 when she became head coach of the Tennessee Vols women's basketball team. For 38 years, she has broken records, winning more games than any NCAA team in basketball history. She has coached an undefeated season, co-captained the first women's Olympic team, was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame, and has been named Sports Illustrated 'Sportswoman of the Year'. 

She owes her coaching success to her personal struggles and triumphs. She learned to be tough from her strict, demanding father. Motherhood taught her to balance that rigidity with communication and kindness. She is a role model for the many women she's coached; 74 of her players have become coaches. 

Pat's life took a shocking turn in 2011, when she was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's disease, an irreversible brain condition that affects 5 million Americans. Despite her devastating diagnosis, she led the Vols to win their sixteenth SEC championship in March 2012. Pat continues to be a fighter, facing this new challenge the way she's faced every other--with hard work, perseverance, and a sense of humor. 

Her accomplishments are too many to list, but here are a few highlights;

Pat Summitt is the most winning coach in the history of NCAA Division 1 college basketball, boasting 1098 victories from 1974 until 2012. Olympic Gold Medalist in 1976 games. Eight-time NCAA Championships, Seven-time NCAA Coach of the Year,  Named the Naismith Basketball Coach of the Century, Awarded the 2012 Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama, and the Arthur Ashe Courage Award.

Pat Summitt is a gritty, uncompromising coach. She admits that she would push her athletes beyond their personal limitations and bring out new levels of performance--the true role of a coach. She described how she would brake the individual players down, then rebuilt them to be better team players and stronger athletes. From the players perspectives (that pepper the memoire), in coaching them on the court, Pat Summitt taught them life skills, and help the players to do better in so many aspects of their lives. A true testament to Summitt's contribution to each player: 100% of her players graduated from University of Tennessee and 78 of her players went on to become teachers and coaches.

The autobiography itself was co-authored with Sally Jenkins, and is well written. Summitt admits that she has difficulty remembering day to day details, as a result of her suffering from early onset Alzheimer's which was diagnosed in 2011. However, she says that she remembers all of the people that have played a role in her life as a coach, and her memoire demonstrates this.

As a critique of the work, I would say that it's heavily laden with a litany of people and players, and because I don't know anyone from the sport, I found the endless list of people hard to track and somewhat confusing. With player turn over every year, I lost track of most of the players. Maybe if I was more familiar with the stars of NCAA, I would have tracked them more easily.

I would have liked more personal details on Pat's ongoing relationship with her family members, but perhaps this was covered in her previous work.

I commend the University of Tennessee for supporting and accommodating Summitt despite her health condition, and I wish that more employers were so generous to those employees who have been loyal contributors before diagnoses. Perhaps their treatment of Summitt and their willingness to provide ongoing support will serve as a bench mark for other institutions and private companies.

The most beautiful passage of the book was its final 3 lines.  Regardless of whether you believe in God, these words are beautiful. I wish Pat Summitt peace in her future, and when it's her time to fly, I hope she reaches her chosen destination. If anyone can, it would be Pat Summitt.

Etta and Otto and Russell and James by Emma Hooper

A CBC Radio One recommendation that didn't disappoint. 

Here's a summary thanks to Goodreads.com: 

I've gone. I've never seen the water, so I've gone there. I will try to remember to come back.
Etta's greatest unfulfilled wish, living in the rolling farmland of Saskatchewan, is to see the sea. And so, at the age of eighty-two she gets up very early one morning, takes a rifle, some chocolate, and her best boots, and begins walking the 2,000 miles to water.  

Meanwhile her husband Otto waits patiently at home, left only with his memories. Their neighbour Russell remembers too, but differently - and he still loves Etta as much as he did more than fifty years ago, before she married Otto.

I gave this novel to my mom for Christmas 2015. It was recommended by CBC's Book Reviews as one of the top 100 novels of 2015. I would rate this one as one of the top 25 books in 2015, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. My mother who is almost 80 also enjoyed it very much.

The enduring love that Russell held for Etta was delicious and sweet. It is a true, gentle love story. It's creative and original in nature. We never quite know who James is...and I still don't.

I recommend it as a very enjoyable read.  

Canada Reads 2016 #3: Birdie

 To date, my favorite novel in 2016's Canada Reads competition.

Here's a summary provided by Goodreads.com:

Birdie is a darkly comic and moving first novel about the universal experience of recovering from wounds of the past, informed by the lore and knowledge of Cree traditions. Bernice Meetoos, a Cree woman, leaves her home in Northern Alberta following tragedy and travels to Gibsons, BC. She is on something of a vision quest, seeking to understand the messages from The Frugal Gourmet (one of the only television shows available on CBC North) that come to her in her dreams. She is also driven by the leftover teenaged desire to meet Pat Johns, who played Jesse on The Beachcombers, because he is, as she says, a working, healthy Indian man. Bernice heads for Molly’s Reach to find answers but they are not the ones she expected.

With the arrival in Gibsons of her Auntie Val and her cousin Skinny Freda, Bernice finds the strength to face the past and draw the lessons from her dreams that she was never fully taught in life. Part road trip, dream quest and travelogue, the novel touches on the universality of women's experience, regardless of culture or race. 

Slow to start, and a challenge to understand. The story is somewhat segmented at first, and it takes some time to figure out the narrative. That being said, the level of creativity in this novel is commendable. It's unlike anything I've ever read, and I found it really engaging.

Layered with Cree language and beautiful imagery.  I loved the author's playful creation of compound words.

I hope that Canada and the world get the opportunity to discover this story, and this author. It is a special book.

Canada Reads: 5 Books, One Contest. Let's get at it!

This year, I resolved to participate in the Canada Reads challenge. With the 5 finalists selected, I am away to the races with the required reading. This year's theme is "Starting Over", or transformative events that create a new beginning.

In addition to the fun reading, I secured tickets for two of the four debate days; I will be attending on Tuesday March 22, and Wednesday March 23 at the CBC Broadcasting Centre in Toronto. What fun! Sadly, Wab Kinew will not be hosting this event, as his political aspirations have forced him to step down from this project. I wish him well with the political race. (Not sure who the host will be in his stead.)

Now let me get back to my reading!

Here are the final 5 books that I will be reading:

Farah Mohamed defends Bone and Bread

Vinay Virmani defends The Hero's Walk 

Bruce Poo Tip defends Birdie

Adam Copeland defends Minister Without Portfolio

Clara Hughes defends The Illegal

Here are the authors and the celebrity personalities that will be defending their novels:

No pressure, but the Celebs better bring their A game!!!

Here's a Challenge!

So reading can't compete with Social Media and On-Line Entertainment? Hmmm...

Found the quick video, and was tickled that it's from Springwater Library

in Ontario! 

Way to go Springwater!

Enjoy!

Under My Tree This Year: Doctor Sleep

Christmas has always meant getting a good book or two as gifts from my family. Luckily, this year was no exception. I have fallen into the habit of buying myself a few books, wrapping them and popping them under the tree, so that on Christmas morning, I am never disappointed. In my opinion, it's better to take matters into your own hands if there is ever the chance that you might be disappointed in Santa.

This year, our family pulled names from a hat, and my dad ended up being my secret Santa.  As it turned out, not so secret though, because he just picked up the phone to see which book I wanted. Having just finished listening to the CBC interview of Stephen King and his son Owen King, I thought it would be nice to try Stephen King's most recent work, Doctor Sleep.

(Random thought--would it be intimidating to be a fledgling author with your father "Stephen King" watching on? Talk about a huge shadow under which to live. Mind you, I bet you'd have a little in with one or two publishers. Not sure. Owen King sounded pretty confident and grounded regardless. Maybe I should give his work a go.)

Now, I'm not a King fan per se, but as you may recall from my previous blog post in August 2012, I really enjoyed his historically based fictional account of the assassination of JFK in 11/22/63. It was my first kick at King, and I found it well written and very entertaining. When I listened to the interview on CBC, I learned that King had written The Shining. Doctor Sleep, as Stephen King explained in the interview, is the followup novel that presents Danny Torrence as an adult, and shows how the little boy in the movie has grown up. Now, I have never made it through the entire movie--it's just too scary. I sheepishly admit that I didn't know the movie was based on King's novel.

Having finished Doctor Sleep over the holidays, and I am going to suggest that it wasn't as good as 11/22/63. I know it's a totally different genre, and it's probably not fair to compare them two, but I was a little disappointed in Doctor Sleep. I've never read any of King's scary stuff and I wanted to be terrified, horrified, and disturbed. Sorry to say that I wasn't any of those things. In the end though, I did find it entertaining, and I would pick up another one of his novels for light entertainment.

I'm open to suggestions on which one I should read next.  I want it to be really scary. No half measures...I want to lose sleep...not be put to sleep.

I found this really funny interview with King speaking to a room of english university students. Thought I would include it, as an insight into King's mind.

Type Book Store in Toronto has a Dirty Little Secret at Night...

 

Here's what books do at night, when no one is looking!

Timeless Values: I love you Major Pettigrew!!!

The first novel from Helen Simonson, Major Pettigrew's Last Stand is a charming read. Like slipping on a pair of well worn slippers, it feels comfortable right from the start. Over the Christmas holidays, it was a pleasure to find this novel waiting for me at the end of the busy day.



Helen Simonson's website summarizes the novel in the following way

"When Major Pettigrew, a retired British army major in a small English village, embarks on an unexpected friendship with the widowed Mrs. Ali, who runs the local shop, trouble erupts to disturb the bucolic serenity of the village and of the Major’s carefully regimented life.

As the Major and Mrs. Ali discover just how much they have in common, including an educated background and a shared love of books, they must struggle to understand what it means to belong and how far the obligations of family and tradition can be set aside for personal freedom. Meanwhile, the village itself, lost in its petty prejudices and traditions, may not see its own destruction coming."

http://www.helensimonson.com/

Here is the author in discussion about her journey through the writing of this novel:

In a small, quaint English village Major Pettigrew is playing the role of stiff, traditionalist--his small village and his country club see him as old-school gentry. But as his friendship with Mrs. Ali grows,  he feels alienated from his old chums, and we discover that at heart, Major Pettigrew is a non-conformist. He is confronted with the reality that discrimination and ignorance abound in his happy little world, and he takes a stand that must surprise many.

This was an entertaining novel, and I really enjoyed the character development. Simonson does a great job painting a realistic picture with lots of details. I look forward to her next work.

In doing the research for this blog, I found a couple of entertaining video clips of the author speaking on a panel about making the shift from writing student to author. She has a good sense of humor. Check it out:  Simonson as Panelist

Funny Video: Don't Interrupt Mom...She's Reading a Book!

If you ever feel like you get interrupted a million times from your book, have a look at this quick video! It might drive the point home with the teenagers!!!

If you have any funny book related videos, please share them with me! Have a great weekend!

Just Finished, But Didn't Want it to End!!!

Cutting for Stone is a Treat!  

Here's a summary of Abraham Verghese's novel courtesy of the New York Times Sunday Book Review, Feb 6 2009 (I'll leave the book reviewers to write the summary, but I'm happy to offer my thoughts afterwards!):

"The plot of this big, dense book is fairly straightforward. Marion and Shiva Stone are born one dramatic afternoon in 1954 in Addis Ababa, the same day their mother — a nun, Sister Mary Joseph Praise — dies of complications from her hidden pregnancy. The boys are conjoined at the skull, yet separated at birth; they are raised by Dr. Kalpana Hemlatha, a forceful woman known as Hema, and Dr. Abhi Ghosh, both immigrants from Madras and both doctors at the hospital where the boys’ natural parents also worked. Missing Hospital, it’s called: “Missing was really Mission Hospital, a word that on the Ethiopian tongue came out with a hiss so it sounded like ‘Missing.’ ” They grow up amid the political turmoil of Ethiopia (its actual chronology altered slightly by Verghese to suit his fictional purposes), and in 1979 Marion flees, first to Nairobi and finally to New York, where he qualifies as a surgeon. Shiva, too, goes into medicine, specializing in treating vaginal fistula, for which work he is acclaimed in this very newspaper, a sure sign of his renown. Almost supernaturally close as children, the brothers become more and more distant as the novel progresses; they are dramatically reunited at its end — through the mysterious agency of the long-vanished Thomas Stone."

This summary doesn't spoil the story whatsoever, and I encourage you to read and enjoy it.
The following brief interview with Verghese will help explain the inspiration of his novel:



Cutting for Stone was a memorable treat: I found the language rich and flowing, the imagery enchanting and insightful. As a general rule, I do not mark a book. I know that markings distract subsequent readers, and so I really avoid this practice. However, in this novel, I just couldn't help but highlight a few passages that stood out for me. Here are a few lines that I really want to remember:

On the topic of death, what insight:  "...the tragedy of death had to do entirely with what was left unfulfilled." and as the novel's father figure struggles to impart the last of his insights to his son:  "He was teaching me how to die, just as he'd taught me how to live." and further along, "Death is the cure for all disease."

How true is this statement?: "Life too is like that. You live it forward, but understand it backward."

"Guilt leads to righteous action, but rarely it is the right action."

"Knowledge shall be promoted by frequent exercise
Art polishes and improves nature
Fortune is a fair but fickle mistress
Yesterday misspent cant be recalled
Vanity makes beauty contemptible
Wisdom is more valuable than riches."

And wouldn't our world be so different if we would live this idea more in our actions: "How we treat the least of our brethren, how we treat the peasant suffering with volvulus, that's the measure of this country. Not our fighter planes or tanks or how big the Emperor's palace happens to be."

On the lighter side, I caught myself laughing out loud when Matron chides Dr. Stone's cursing during a medical emergency: "Custody of the tongue." I have never heard this reproach, but it was memorable for me.

The following article written by Verghese explains how the author's work mirrored some of his personal experiences:  http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2010/apr/11/abraham-verghese-ethiopia-coup-1973

I hope you discover this work, and enjoy it as much as I have! 

Life's Getting Too Complicated!

This video makes me chuckle. The more complicated our world becomes, the more silly we become! Enjoy!

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

Happy Easter to All!

This short film (15 minutes) is truly touching. The "short" won the Oscar this year, and I can see why.

I happily shared it with my 5 year old, and he couldn't stop watching it either. 

 Enjoy the story, it's beautiful.

Super Cute Video for the Love of Books!!!

Have a look at this video on Youtube! If you love books, you might find this cute!

I'm guilty of organizing the books so that they look good!!! But this must have taken HOURS to do! Love the music too. Hope you enjoy it too!