The Wild Truth by Carine McCandless

20 Friday Feb 2015

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Biography, Non-fiction

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abused children, adventurers, brothers and sisters, Chistopher Johnson McCandless, dysfunctional families

Carine McCandless, the sister of Chris McCandless whose life was so eloquently portrayed by Jon Krakauer in INTO THE WILD, has now written her own poignant and heartfelt story. Krakauer’s book moved thousands of readers, each of whom had his/her own idea about why Chris McCandless left the world behind and went into the wilds of Alaska. His sister, however, explains that he was running away from his troubled and abusive family. As Leo Tolstoy said in Anna Karenina, “All happy families are alike, each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.”

“The Wild Truth is an important book on two fronts: It sets the record straight about a story that has touched thousands of readers, and it opens up a conversation about hideous domestic violence hidden behind a mask of prosperity and propriety.”–NPR.org

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The Homesman by Glendon Swarthout

13 Friday Feb 2015

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Fiction, Historical Fiction, western

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Midwest, suicidal behavior, Western stories, women pioneers

The Homesman was originally published in 1988 but has recently been released as a paperback in conjunction with a major motion picture starring Tommy Lee Jones and Hilary Swank. It’s always fun to read the book first and then see the movie! The main characters, George Briggs, a low-life claim jumper, and Mary Bee Cuddy, an indomitable and resourceful spinster, are forced into some sort of functioning relationship as they trek back to the East from the Midwest during the 1850’s, battling ice storms, Indian attacks, famine and loneliness. The book highlights the plight of American frontier women and the hardships that they endured. After reading this book, the reader will appreciate the comforts of 21st century living.

“I tell friends what The Homesman is about and their eyes open wide and they can’t wait to read it. And that’s just the plot. Swarthout puts you there, in time and place. I love the way he writes.” (Elmore Leonard)

“No reader should even attempt to guess what happens. Surprise piles upon surprise… Glendon Swarthout has honed writing excellence to a nearly unsurpassable level… A powerful novel… A classic of vivid realism and gripping storytelling.” (Associated Press)

“Totally involving from its very first words… a dangerous journey into the soul, an exploration of the relationships of men and women to each other, to their environments and—ultimately most devastatingly—to themselves.” (Los Angeles Times Book Review)

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Monthly Archives: February 2015

The Wild Truth by Carine McCandless

The Homesman by Glendon Swarthout