2011: Book 36

Don't Wake Me at Doyles: The Remarkable Memoir of an Ordinary Irish Woman and Her Extraordinary Life by Maura Murphy

400 pages

Completed 4/11/11

The tales of Maura Murphy cannot be ignored; a mother of nine, with lives in both England and Ireland, with stories of love and of woe, this memoir is poignantly terrific. Stricken by poverty and illness throughout her life, Murphy is then dealt the final blow; a cancer diagnosis. With journal entries of each of her children and her husband intermitently making appearances, the reader is given a glimpse into the reasons, and effects of Maura being Maura.

A full-life memoir, the kind I rarely read, this one was worth it. And it was okay to be a bit perturbed by Murphy and her actions; she makes no exscuses, and is fine in - and with - her ways. As she ages, her decisions become clearer, and one cannot help but be on her side.

2011: Book 28

One Child by Torey Hayden


336 pages

Completed 3/21/11

The tale of a special education teacher whose classroom is upended when six-year-old Sheila, awaiting placement in a state ward after kidnapping and burning a three--year-old, arrives. Prone to violent outbursts, refusing to do work, and arriving day after day filthy and stinking, Sheila is a challenge for Hayden. Slowly but surely, she breaks through Sheila's walls, and discovers the child is gifted in more ways than one.

After suffering a trauma, Hayden expects Sheila to revert to her old ways, but the child is resilient. But the looming state commitment drives all around her to question whether that is the best option for this young child. I enjoyed this read; Hayden's feelings towards "her" children are heartfelt and true. While researching post-reading to see where Sheila is today, I found that Hayden wrote a follow-up to this book, which is on my PBS wish-list.

2011: Book 16

Scratch Beginnings: Me, $25, and the Search for the American Dream by Adam Shepard


240 pages

Completed 2/22/11

The tale of a recent college graduate who decides to take $25, drop himself in the middle of North Carolina, and meet set goals in one year's time, this memoir's interesting concept drew me in. However, my interest didn't hold for very long. Shepard didn't struggle very much - or if he did, he didn't present it well - and left me completely underwhelmed.

Giving himself one year, but reaching his goals way sooner, and then abandoning the remainder of the year left a bad taste in my mouth. Barely touching upon topics rampant in homeless shelters and in the bottom rung of society - drug use, addiction, mental illness, crime, prison - Shepard seems to have painted a rose-colored glasses view on his fortunate "way up". In search of the real American Dream, Shepard should have relied on the character Derrick to present the reality of it.

2011: Book 15

Even Dogs Go Home to Die: A Memoir by Linda St. John


272 pages

Completed 2/19/11

An oddly written memoir - chapters are no more than three pages - St. John delves into her childhood when faced with her alcoholic father's impending death. With a mother who speaks awful English, two sisters and a brother, St. John reveals the abuse and poverty they suffered as children, the retribution they dished out in their adult years, and their reactions to their father's downward spiral.

Annoyingly enough, St. John writes exactly how her mother speaks ("dies ees enuf Landa"), and instead of juxtaposing this with her educated self, the rest of the book is written in slang and in odd ways. The title of the book, briefly mentioned towards the end, could have been expounded upon, in my opinion. Despite it's oddities, St. John's memoir did a wonderful job synopsizing her family.