Book Review: The Band that Played On by Steve Turner

Katie April 7, 2011 0 Comments

Outside historians, the public is aware of the Titanic musicians thanks to two popular movies, Titanic, and A Night To Remember.  Both of these films make a point to show the musicians performing until the very end as they went down with the great ship.  Little has been knock about these musicians, and although volumes have been written about the Titanic, the band has not been the subject of any one book.
The Band That Played On: The extraordinary Story of the 8 Musicians Who Went Down with the Titanic by Steve Turner, is the first book to focus solely on this little known-aspect of Titanic history.  Turner addresses the many questions left unexplored, including: Who were these men? What were their values and beliefs? What compelled them to come back on deck after retiring for the evening? As bandmaster, did Wallace Hartley play a vital role?

The story tells of the lives of Wallace Hartley, Roger Bricoux, William Theodore Brailey, John Wesley Woodward, John Law Hume, Georges Alexandre Krins, Percy Cornelius Taylor and John Frederick Preston Clark.

The first couple of chapters give a lot of background information and if you are not interested in the historical aspect of the book, it might be hard to get into. However, I urge you to continue because the stories of these 8 men are fascinating.

It also details what songs they played as the boat went down – from jazz to ragtime to hymns (based on the recollection of survivors) and Nearer, My God to Thee as the water was up to the band’s knees.  The final chapters tell a bit about what ended up with the families of the band members, which are also some interesting stories.

Also included in the book are photos mixed in to all the chapters.  There are photos of artifacts, photos of the men in the band and their homes.  I found these photos really helpful in picturing the times in which these men lived and they really added a lot to the reading experience.

The Publication of the book Marks the May 2011 Centenary of the Launch of the RMS Titanic in Belfast, Northern Ireland.


I received an advanced copy of this book from Thomas Nelson to post a review.  All the thoughts of the book are my own and I was not compensated to give the book a favorable review.

Book Review: The Hidden Magic of Walt Disney World

Katie April 6, 2011 0 Comments

The Hidden Magic of Walt Disney World (by Susan Veness) boasts that it has over 600 Secrets of the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom.  While I did not count all the secrets I learned, this book is jam packed with them!

A few of the secrets in the book I had read online previously. (Though I have not been to the parks in several years, I do often taunt myself and read about the parks)  A few of the secrets debunk other secrets I had read online. And a TON of the secrets I did not know before.  For instance – The Great Movie Ride has 2 scenarios with the live action – gangster and cowboy.  I’ve been on that ride twice and both times it was the gangster! I had no idea there was a second option.

The book also guides you through each of the 4 parks in a way that naturally brings you around to all the different areas.  It would be easy to have this book with you and follow along to find a lot of the hidden items and secrets as you visit the park.  (And I know if I go to any of the parks any time soon I will have my Nook with this e-book close by!)  There is also Bonus Content at the end of the book which contains 10 Secrets form the Resort Hotels!

Whether you have visited Disney World before or just dream of visiting, I recommend this book because it has a lot of history on the parks and why certain items were chosen and it also even has some excerpts of quotes from Disney Imagineers (my dream job!) and other fun facts related to what is being discussed in that section of the book.  But beware – after you read the book you WILL want to plan a trip down to  Florida…

Now that I have finished the book I am trying to plan my next visit to Florida! Hanson will be playing as part of the Food & Wine festival at EPCOT this fall so I might have just found my excuse to get there!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Book Review: Johann Sebastian Bach by Rick Marschall

Katie April 6, 2011 0 Comments

Johann Sebastian Bach’s music told about Christ. He began each composure by writing “Jesus Save Me” in the upper left corner. “To God Be The Glory” was written on the bottom right corner of the last page of every completed piece.

Bach came from a family of musicians and was composing at a time where music could be heard nearly all the time!  It is hard to think about music being available to people all the time without them having CD players or iPods, but live music would be played from rooftops, for the wealthy during dinner and sometimes even in parks for the public.

The story of Bach’s life, told from a more Christian perspective, was incredibly interesting and I am looking forward to reading more books in Thomas Nelson’s “Christian Encounters” series.

Johann Sebastian Bach by Rich Marschall is one of the Biographies in the Christian Encounters series published by Thomas Nelson Publishers.  The series highlights important lives from all ages and areas of the Church.  Some are familiar faces. Others are unexpected guests. But all, through their relationships, struggles, prayers and desires, uniquely illuminate our shared experience.

This book will be in-stores and available for e-readers April 12, 2011!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Book Review: The Charlatan’s Boy by Jonathan Rogers

Katie April 5, 2011 0 Comments

The Charlatan’s Boy by Jonathan Rogers is a novel in the genre of Fiction / Fantasy / Young Adult.  It tells the tale of a young boy named Grady who travels from town to town with a man named Floyd playing tricks on the villagers to try and make a buck.

Grady doesn’t know how he was born and assumes he is an orphan, though he sometimes questions if Floyd is his father.  Floyd boast that Grady is “The Wild Man of the Feechiefen Swamp!” Feechies are creatures from the swamp, often told about in stories and puppet shows. An Urban Legend of sorts. Floyd preys on the villagers to get their money by putting Grady in a box and having him act like a Feechie.

When the feechie story is no longer popular, Floyd shops Grady to the villagers as “The Ugliest Boy in the World”, betting the villages that they can not find someone who is uglier. They try several other things to make money and end up trying to get the feechie buzz going again by leaving items at different villages and hoping that the villagers will embellish on the stories amongst themselves. At the end of the book, Grady finally finds out some things about himself and where he came from.  Grady’s story will continue in the Fall of 2011.

I really enjoyed this book and the world of Corenwald. (At first I was nervous because there was a map in the beginning of the book and often that means the book will be hard to follow, but I had no problem) The writing style made it easy to quickly read the book without missing out on any of what was going on. I really did not want to put it down once I got going with the story and finished it in about 3 hours, which was shocking considering it is just over 300 pages (and I’m not really a speed reader!)  I would definitely recommend this for males or females who enjoy Young Adult novels. I am looking forward to continuing the journey with Grady in the next book which is set to be released this fall!

Book Review: Unsinkable by Abby Sunderland and Lynn Vincent

Katie March 31, 2011 0 Comments

At just sixteen years old, Abby Sunderland made the decision to attempt to get the record for the youngest to ever sail around the world. Unsinkable tells the story from 2 points of view for the majority of the book – hers and the narrators.  After her boat was de-masted in the middle of the Indian Ocean, a third point of view comes in to play: Those who helped rescue her from her boat Wild Eyes and take her back to safety.

More people have flown into outer space than have sailed solo around the globe. It is a challenge so immense that many have died trying, and all have been pushed beyond every physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual limit. In Unsinkable, readers follow Abby Sunderland into those depths. This biography delivers a gripping and evocative firsthand account that starts prior to her departure, travels through her daring (and sometimes near-death) encounters on the open sea, to her dramatic rescue in the remotest corner of the Indian Ocean, and the media explosion that happened upon her safe return to dry land.

Unsinakable is interesting in that it has 3 different people telling the story.  There are icons before new passages which alert the readers to who is telling that particular part of the story.  The boat icon represents Abby’s voice, the anchor represents the narrator’s voice and the flag represents those who took place in the rescue efforts to save Abby from the Indian Ocean.


From a very young age, Abby and her family had gone sailing.  Her brother, Zac, had said solo around the world as a teen.  Abby had decided that she also wanted to sail solo, and if she succeeded would be the youngest person to ever do so.  Her mother at first was hesitant, but said that if she could find a sponsor (something her brother Zac struggled with at first) then she could go.  Abby was quickly able to find a sponsor and then the hunt for the perfect boat was on.


Many critics were around saying that this was all orchestrated by her father.  It was not.  It was Abby’s dream to do this and her father simply encouraged her to follow her dreams. All the decisions she made were her own – whether it was to stop at a port to get her boat fixed or ultimately to send out a distress signal when her boat rolled in the middle of the Indian Ocean – which would end her trip.


I admire Abby for her strength to make it through several months out in he middle of the ocean all alone and because she followed her dreams.  I found her story to be very encouraging and I hope that if Abby does decide to try and sail around the world again, that she is successful in her next attempt.


Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Book Review: American Idol Exposed

Katie March 23, 2011 0 Comments

I am not sure where I ended up reading about this book, maybe at Vote For the Worst, but for the past couple of weeks I have had it bookmarked on Barnes and Noble’s website and have been debating purchasing it for my Nook.
I opted to first download the “sample”, which generally is the first few chapters of the book.  However, this sample was 262 pages! At first I had thought there was some mistake and I had gotten the whole book as the sample, but then I made my way to the end of the sample and it ended in the middle of a sentence.  I went back up to the Table of Contents and I had roughly *90* more chapters to read. (Some chapters were only a paragraph or two.)
However, there was nothing all that interesting in the book that is tempting me spend the $3.99 to find out the rest of it.
The idea of the book is that Justin Buckles worked on the show American Idol for several seasons and he knows a lot of the “behind the scenes” drama that went on. Except most of the drama, was exactly that – going on with people behind the scenes.  In the 262 pages I had read there was mention of the Paula/Corey Clarke drama, something about Kim Locke dating someone on the show which I had never heard about before, the Clay/Ruben drama and a very, very long chapter on Diana DeGarmo’s mother. (Surprise! She was a stage mother)  Everything else was about the crew doing drugs and how nasty the higher ups were to people and how he stuck around despite being sworn at and belittled pretty much every day.
I can’t say that I would recommend this book, but it is rather inexpensive if you have $4 laying around and are looking for something relatively easy to read for your Nook or Kindle.

Book Review: The Shape of Mercy by Susan Meissner

Katie March 15, 2011 0 Comments

The Shape of Mercy is three stories all intertwined in to one.  We first meet Lauren Durough, who is the only child to a man who wanted a son to carry on the family legacy.  Desperate to break from her family’s expectations, she takes a part-time job although she does not need one.
Her boss is Abigail Boyles, an eighty-three year old retired Librarian.  Abigail has a Diary that was passed down through her family for many years that was written by Mercy Hayworth who lived in Salem during the witch trials.
Lauren’s job is to transcribe the diary from the hundreds of year old diary of Mercy.  She goes to Abigail’s several nights a week to work on it and quickly becomes consumed with the story. (read more about transcribe anywhere here)
I, like Lauren, also became consumed with the story.  At the beginning of each chapter there are several excerpts of the Diary written which tell Mercy’s personal account of the Salem Witch Trials.  It was very hard to put this book down once I started it, which made for a couple of late nights for me over the past few days!  I was just so into the story – all of the stories! and I wanted to know what happened right away, even if it meant staying up all night.
You might assume that you know what is going to happen if you had read or heard anything about the Salem Witch Trials, but Mercy’s story, as well as Abigail’s and Lauren’s all have many surprising twists and turns that you most likely won’t see coming. (At least, I didn’t see a lot of them coming!)
Now that the book has ended I find myself wanting to know more! I definitely recommend this book if you are into Contemporary Fiction and/or Historical Fiction.  It is a pretty quick & easy read and is a great story (or three).

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review. I was not told what to write and I was not monetarily compensated for my review.

Book Review: We Be Big By Rick Burgess and Bill Bussey with Don Keith

Katie March 8, 2011 0 Comments

Recently I got the chance to review We Be Big – The Mostly True Story of How Two Kids from Calhoun County, Alabama Became Rick and Bubba by Rick Burgess and Bill Bussey with Don Keith.

Before reading this, I really knew little about Rick and Bubba.  Honestly, all I knew was that they were on the radio and I figured – what the heck – I will check out the book and see what they have to say. (Connecticut doesn’t have any stations with their show in syndication – it is aired mainly in the south)

The book tells about growing up for Rick and Bubba and what led them to become interested in being in the radio business.  Chapters alternate telling Rick’s story and then Bubba’s of about the same time in their life and all the paths that God guided them too before eventually bringing them together (again.) They first met in a Spanish class where they made their teacher’s life miserable!

The story tells about their trials and tribulations once becoming ‘Rick & Bubba’ and having their show move from various stations as well as the personal tragedies they had to overcome and how their relationship with God and each other helped them through.

It also explains why the book is called We Be Big – self proclaimed sexiest fat men alive, they had their toll-free number for callers to reach them be 866 WE BE BIG.

Now that I know more about Rick and Bubba I am bummed that there isn’t somewhere local where I can listen in on their radio show! I’ll just have to try and stream it online from their website, http://www.rickandbubba.com

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Book Review: Pujols More Than The Game by Scott Lamb&Tim Ellsworth

Katie February 24, 2011 0 Comments

Albert Pujols is an All-Star.  Those of you who follow baseball, you know this.  But what you might not know is that not only is Albert an All-Star on the field, but he is also an All-Star off the field.

In Pujols – More Than The Game Scott Lamb & Tim Ellsworth break down all that Pujols has endured in his life. The son of a father who often abused alcohol, Pujols very early in life decided that alcohol was not for him.  He did not want his children to have to drag their father to bed as he had to growing up.  In addition, Pujols does not smoke, have tattoos or piercings and he even skips out on eating sweets and cookies because they are not healthy for him.

Pujols credits his success to God, and it is his Faith which helps ground him as an athlete and a player. Pujols is quoted in the book as saying:

“God has given me the ability to succeed in the game of baseball. But baseball is not the end; baseball is the means by which my wife, Dee Dee, and I glorify God. Baseball is simply my platform to elevate Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior.”

With the salary he makes playing professional baseball he has created his own foundation to give back to the community around St. Louis where he plays for the Cardinals as well as in his home country of the Dominican Republic.

Reading this book has given me a new found respect for Pujols.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Book Review: The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants

Katie February 10, 2011 0 Comments

Recently I read the 4 books in The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series as well as 3 Willows, which is a spin-off of the series.  The books are written by Ann Brashares.  I had seen part of the movie starring Alexis Bledel as Lena, Amber Tamblyn as Tibby, America Ferrera as Carmen, and Blake Lively as Bridget.  I didn’t realize there is actually a second movie as well until after I read the series. (I will have to rent them both soon)

The books follow the summers of “The Septembers” a group of girls who were born friends as their mothers had all met during their pregnancy and all the Moms were due in September.  They are spending one of their first summers apart – Lena is off to Greece with her sister to visit her Grandparents, Tibby is stuck home working and babysitting her (much) younger siblings, Carmen is going south to spend time with her father and Bridget is off to soccer camp!

Before they leave, Carmen finds a pair of pants and somehow it fits all of the girls perfectly. (All the girls are not the same size – Carmen is a full figured latina, Bee is very tall, etc) They make a pact to send the pants to each other throughout the summer and then meet up and discuss the luck the pants brought them after the summer is over.  The pants would make them feel like the others were with them when they were wearing them.

The books follow all the trials and tribulations of teenagers finishing high school and starting college as well as the added stresses of first loves, divorced and remarrying parents, helping your family grieve over a lost parent, etc.  One of my friends (who I have known since I was born!) recommended that I read these because she said they would be “easy, fun reads”  She did not warn me that I would not only laugh at some of the situations that these girls got themselves into – but I would cry as well!

All of the books are around 300 pages in length, and would be categorized as Young Adult. I flew through them because I kept wanting to know what would happen next. They totally screwed up my sleep schedule for a week or two!

After finishing the 4 “Sisterhood” books, chronicling 4 summers of the Sisterhoods lives, I found out about “3 Willows” which was subtitled ‘The Sisterhood  Grows’  I wasn’t sure what to expect, so I read it next.  Honestly, I could have done without the book entirely as part of the series.  The only member of the Sisterhood who actually made an appearance in the book was Lena – and it was only for a very brief moment.  Her sister Effie is in it, however, she is really rotten in it!  In the other books I didn’t really have a problem with Effie but I was definitely not a fan of her in 3Willows.

The book follows Polly, Ama and Jo – 3 girls who attend the same high school as the Sisterhood.  The Sisterhood is some sort of “legend” in the school.  The girls are mentioned here and there.  I could have done without this and I think that the book would have been better received by me if it was an entirely different story with no ties to the Sisterhood.

I am not sure if 3 Willows will continue on to a series – but I think I would like it much better if any references to the Sisterhood were just dropped.  The story lines of Polly – who went off to Modeling camp, Ama – who was off camping and completely out of her element and Jo – who started drama at her summer job on the beach – all kept me interested enough on their own and I am sure any future adventures of the trio would keep me just as entertained without it having to be linked to the other series.