Customer Reviews:
herbs at their best.......2007-05-13
Pennsylvania Dutch Inn mysteries are hard to beat. I had somehow missed this one earlier and just can't get enough of Tamar Myers books! They are all fun and rewarding reads!
Magda's Spyglass Focuses Inward With Wide-Eyed, Grinning Honesty, as well as Outward With All In Fun Observations........2005-11-09
Magdelana's snap, cracke & pop descriptions of people in her world drives a quick, delightful read, so much so that it's easy to miss some of the constant and intriguing, worthy cultural messages.
You got it. Light, hilarious satire's the game here. Yet, it's being played at no loss of intimacy and involvement normally found in drama, which is rarely available in comedy, especially not in gourmet satire.
What I enjoyed most in the opening chapters of this 2nd novel in the PenDutch series was the point at which Magdalena first turned her snappy spyglass onto her foibles, focusing a schooldays shadow as brightly as the dim wittedness she'd been observing outside herself. After establishing her humorous disgust of the reportedly lacking mental capacities of Susannah's boyfriend and Hernia's chief of police, Melvin Stoltzfus, Magdalena noted her collection of "DUH" brain cells by confessing to the reader that it was Melvin's paper she chose to copy that one-and-only time she ever cheated on an exam.
It would be easy to miss this critical self-honesty in which Mags exposes her failings with as much quip & glee (quietly low profile though it be) as she does that of others. No one escapes Mags's sassy, brassy tongue. And, I enjoyed the fact that Bugsy, in the first scene, wasn't at all put off, insulted, or deterred by Mags's clear and constant rips on his person, character, and apparent con-artist intentions. Be sure to spot the whitehead on his nose, which changes sides from day to day, and never escapes Mags's focus.
The humor in this series is fast, deep, and complex. The above observations indicate to me that Myers's character-cutting humor is meant to be light (and enlightening) fun. What is NOT the case here, but sometimes seems to be the driving force in heavy satire, cutting remarks can be a cover for an underlying, dark viciousness emanating from a horrendously scarred background.
The style and execution of Myers's humor are worth taking time to study. First, though, give it up and let the book take you for a ride, to prevent literary exploration and appreciation from spoiling the flowing effervescence (bubbling fun) of the plot.
When checking reviews of various novels in which characters use sarcastic humor, which I've seen as being meant in fun, but which at times could come across to sensitive readers as hurtfully-critical, toe-stubbing, I've noticed an "all's fair" feeling from cutting reviews (sometimes from paid professionals as well as from disgruntled customers), in the case of a reader turning around to rip the author, as the reader felt the writer did to the character's story-mates.
This doesn't feel "all's fair" to me. When I read snarky (and I could call many of them funny or sunny sarcasm) comments like those in Myers's (and in Jill Churchill's Jane Jeffry, Joanne Fluke's Hannah Swensen) series I've been able to take the witty critiques in fun, and to enjoy the heck out of them.
For me, when a character makes cutting remarks in fiction, the syntax spew most often vents a vicarious relief for me. I love it when a fictional female (or male, for that matter) actually spouts in public a few choice descriptions which I'd love to open mouth to but wouldn't dare, for fear of either being stomped out of existence, or hurting someone I would never want to hurt.
Magda periodically confesses that she's living dangerously when she out pops with something most of us couldn't get out of the voice-box outside the safety of paper and print.
Usually, my take on this type of daring (fictional) humorous release is, that's what novels are for?
In the cases of the authors I've reviewed, my opinion is that the humor is not vicious and does not grossly over-stretch the boundaries of sensitivity or good taste, especially when the snipping character notes a few personal foibles as Magda did with her school paper cheating, and as Jane & Hannah do in Churchill & Fluke's series. (I've not listed Joanne Pence's Angie Amalfi in this case because Angie's humor does not have that snarly edge; it has its own warming, slapstick-hilarity style, which is also crave inducing.)
Snarly, critically witty females are in these days, possibly as a final dribble (sometimes a tsunami) of backwash from ages past when women didn't have the vote, but were expected to keep the laundry from going rank and bellies from bashing backbone. Don't EVER force a woman to keep her mouth shut for very long. I warn you!! (In fun; I'm not threatening murder, Melvin!)
All that said, here are a few examples of exquisitely slicing quips from Magda:
>> "I'm talking to a rather skinny young man with a large whitehead on his left nostril who's wearing a gray polyester suit that needs pressing badly." Honesty is my forte.
<<
>> Susannah rolled her eyes so far back into her head that if she had a brain she could have seen it.
<<
>> Norah stared at me. I once saw that look on one of our cow's faces when Mose forgot to turn off the milking machine.
<<
And, yes, you're right. Sometimes witty characters drive a read but do not a story make. They can feel dry to a tired soul needing escape into a real-feeling fictional world (which is uplifting periodically). Seriousness, sensitivity, warmth between characters is necessary for the "live in."
In this sense (as in my other favored authors), I'm happy to report that Magdalena isn't all quip and snip. In fact Magda's moxie hides the hugely sensitive, warm heart of a sometimes frightened woman, as evidenced by many subtle scenes, but especially in the first serious exchange and its culmination, between Magda and Arthur when her acting Voice finally lets go with a boom, and surges Arthur to utter his first speaking part in the plot, cancelling his prior grunting/muttering mode.
Magda's scenes with doc also bring out her sensitive side, in those precious moments when she relates to him with compassion, without comic cover (which can become a high-grade, sophisticated emotional firewall).
The comedy in this novel is clear; the intimacy is subtle and just enough without going overboard, and results, ultimately, in a soothing, cathartic sense of satisfaction.
Each time Magda turns her spyglass inward, to ferret foibles or vulnerability; in "after-the-purge" scenes, she refreshes the reader with slips of warmth and generosities of spirit extended to some of her story mates. What her sarcastic edge might secret is that she loves her people and they love her, and the snipping wit is taken as moxie, charisma, a "presence" worthy of a great actress.
(What was Tamar's other "wanna be when I grow up"?)
What a difficult demand of an embodied soul, of a spirit-package-debt (duty taken willingly with the incarnation contract), if you will, to have a woman of such dramatic spunk and sparkling charisma plunked down and anchored into the center of the comforting, yet controlling rigidity of an Amish/Mennonite culture.
One of the comforts there for me would be the feeling of being safe from the horrors of the outside world. Another would be the luscious pleasures of fresh, real farm food; and a few true luxuries held dear yet pared down enough to feel rich, and balsamic-ly, satisfyingly sensual.
Too much is not enough.
How is a hard-backed chair a comforting luxury? Place rockers under its legs, an Amish quilt over its arms, and set it by a roaring fireplace on a cold night.
I've many times felt the appeal in that cultural commitment, and I'm not alone.
The price, though, can be spiritual shutdown rather than spiritual care.
Not to worry in this case. There will be no aperture reduction of a woman filled with fire & spark, with piss & vinegar, who takes on the heavenly duty of being a snarling thorn in the side of any wrong sides of religious rigidity. It's a rotten job, but somebody's gotta do it.
What a great thematic situation for a mystery series!
When Magda describes the script changes and her concept for the movie being filmed at the PenDutch, you'll get a hint that Tamar isn't using this gestalt solely to empty her soul of its overflow of comedy and spark up some fun. Of course, comedy is never empty of literary cultural conversation; it's a prime speaker in that gourmet game. Who is Robin Williams?
The best clues to this game being mastered arrive when Magda futzes with a character she comes to respect, when her cutting edge is exposed more clearly as entertaining sparring enjoyed by both parties. This firing hot (or cool) behavior is sometimes called "exchanging insults." Masters often do it to dance with intimacy rather than put it off or tear it down.
Yet, the veterans also know when, how, and with whom to let down the gauntlets and be vulnerably serious, even for extended periods of time, during which they're not terrified of being hurt, because the sparring is done from the base of a stable soul rather than from a love-or-attention-starved child terrified of being ignored, abandoned, or nearly fatally wounded ... again.
The masters have taught themselves, through hard-won battles, how to discern whom they can trust and whom they must observe closely, from an emotional distance. They've learned to reserve judgment and trust integrity when a friend does something which could appear to have malicious intent, but doesn't.
Will Myers carry this battle for us through an Amish mystery series?
Believe it.
Trust the integrity of this author's soul. Maybe maintaining that integrity is what required 23 years for Myers to make her first breakthrough with a novel's publication. Maybe that's why honorable editors and agents were involved when Tamar Myers saw the end-of-tunnel headlight. It was a literary spotlight turned all ways, and it made her spyglass sparkle like a Halloween Hannah's White Witch wherewithal.
One of the hardest jobs in an embodied universe is entering a young cultural conversation through the offering of a novel, with soul integrity intact, and maintained in the offering.
Oops. Don't mind me. Seem to have slipped in this review into my sci fi fantasy, alien novelist mind-frame.
"It's a hard job, but somebody's gotta do it."
The authors I'm reviewing are. Maybe all novelists (me too, of course) do, to one degree or another. Maybe what they call a clear Voice in literature is an individual spirit speaking unpollutedly, through that conscious life-force which replenishes and drives the body while it's away from home, where spirits untethered dwell.
Who are you? What do you want? Whom do you trust?
I may have lost my train of thought. Is this Babylon Five?
No? You say it's Tamar Myers and her PenDutch Inn?
Oh. Of course. Same difference.
With Respect and Hope For the Intrepid Soul of Humanity,
Linda G. Shelnutt
Lights, Camera, Murder!.......2005-05-23
Magdelena Yoder, proprietor of the PennDutch Inn in the Mennonite country of Pennsylvania, is surprised when a Hollywood film crew leases her bed and breakfast to shoot a B-grade movie at the inn. Of course, being a good Mennonite who doesn't go to the movies, Magdelena and the rest of town is thrilled. When the movie's obnoxious assistant director is found murdered (with a pitchfork pinning him to Magdelena's barn wall), Magdalena suddenly finds herself as suspect "numero uno" in the murder. So Magdelena puts her detecting skills to work to find the real murderer, with hilarious consequences.
I found the characters in this book endearing and very funny. Magdelena's Amish point of view puts a funny spin on many things the rest of us take for granted. I thoroughly enjoyed this visit to the Amish country, and I look forward to reading another installment in Ms. Myers PennDutch mysteries.
A riveting mystery.......2004-09-12
A friend of mine mailed this book to me ~~ and I have to admit that I chuckled my way throughout this book! I've never read or even heard of Tamar Myers. This is the first book I've read of hers and I plan to read the rest of the books in the series.
Prim and Proper Magdalena Yoder is innkeeper of the PennDutch Inn that was in her family for generations. Her sister, Susannah (who Magdalena thinks should have gotten her name instead!) is gorgeous enough and dating the local sheriff who is after Magdalena to make a confession for a murder in her barn. Magdalena knew that she's going to have to figure out who put that pitchfork through the assistant director in her barn, because it wasn't her and she can't get the sheriff to believe otherwise. Hollywood has come to town and Magdalena is right in the midst of the upheaval.
This is written with spry and witty humor ~~ and Magdalena is just great as a detective. It's a fun book ~~ one that you can't really put down till the last page is finished. It's an interesting twist on detective novels ~~ it's more of an old-fashioned type of detective work and not full of the technology whiz that is common in today's mysteries. It's just clean fun and one that I would like to read more of!
9-11-04
I loved this book!.......2004-01-31
When a Hollywood production company approaches the prim-and-proper Mennonite innkeeper, Magdalena Yoder, about using her inn as the setting for a movie, the amount negotiated soon wins her over. But, when she finds herself literally flooded with up-tight and immoral Hollywood types, and star struck neighbors, she quickly realizes she has made a mistake. Worse, when the assistant director is found murdered in her barn, with her pitchfork, Magdalena quickly becomes the number one suspect. There's only thing that she can do to protect herself and her inn, and that is to find the murderer, and quick!
A friend tipped me off to the existence of Mennonite mystery writer Tamar Myers, and I quickly got this book (even though it is the second Magdalena Yoder book). I must admit that I was not disappointed! The characters are funny and interesting, and I really enjoyed the setting. Ms. Myers captures the Mennonite/Amish way of thinking beautifully ("I am proud of who I am, but not so proud, mind you, that it's a sin."), but who knew that Mennonites could be so funny? I loved this book, and highly recommend it to you!
Product Description
4 Titles By Tamar Myers Pennsylvania Dutch Mysteries with Recipes : Too Many Crooks Spoil the Broth Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Crime Between a Wok and a Hard Place Assault And Pepper. Four mmpb books.
Average customer rating:
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Sinbad: A Real-Life Reader Biography
Melanie Cole
Manufacturer: Mitchell Lane Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Library Binding
 General | Theater | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 1883845734 |
Book Description
Biography of comedian, David Adkins, known as Sinbad
Book Description
Originally part of 'The Arabian Nights,' 'The Seven Voyages of Sinbad the Sailor' chronicles the seven disastrous shipwrecks Sinbad and his motley crew face during their voyages: from facing giant Cyclops-like monsters, vicious serpents, and fierce cannibals, to winning loads of treasure on one island and losing it on the next. Young readers will sail right through these exciting tales, jam-packed with swashbuckling adventures with ill-reputed foes. Beautifully illustrated in color by well-known artist Quentin Blake, this complete, unabridged edition is also ideal for class sets or libraries.
Customer Reviews:
Great advanced chapter book .......2007-10-09
I have this book in paperback. It has 120+ pages. 7.5" x 6" Printed on heavy quality paper. Illustrated by Quentin Blake in color and some black and white. He also illustrated majority of Roald Dahl's books. The book covers from the origin of Sinbad to his seventh voyage. This is a great book to read to 4 to 8 years old, but, for independent reading purpose, I would recommend it to advance chapter readers - 3rd grader or above. For the story, as you know, is a timeless and classic adventure that all kids will enjoy.
Book Description
Full of mischief and valor, ribaldry and romance, The Arabian Nights is a work that has enthralled readers for centuries.
The origins of The Arabian Nights are obscure. About a thousand years ago a vast number of stories in Arabic from various countries began to be brought together; only much later was the collection called The Arabian Nights or the Thousand and One Nights.
Customer Reviews:
Classic Tales- Not To Be Skipped.......2006-02-21
If you read Husain Haddawy Arabian Nights then The Arabian Nights II is a must since it contains stories he omitted from his Arabian Nights Translation. While many may feel his translations are incomplete I still enjoy them. These and many other original Arabic stories give us a glimpse into a long forgotten time constantly diluted by their Disney counterparts. This book includes Sinbad the Sailor, Ali Baba, Ali Al Din ,et Al. I would not recommend this book as a nightly reader to children as some of the content proves extremely lewd however I found it hard to put down once started and would recommend The Arabian Nights II to anyone seeking a unique and adventurous story.
It's good for research, not reading.......2005-12-20
How many stories can you have within a story? Can ancient stories be improved upon? In my opinion the answer is yes, and not only with the Arabian nights but with many European tales as well.
How many times is the imagination sparked by talk of geni's, curses, and the like, but the stories are not well constructed. Reading here requires devotion. I would say it is an excellent reference book, but for fascinating tales, no.
Not the real thing.......2005-05-16
This is a very rum publication. Five years previous to its appearance Husain Haddawy produced as 'The Arabian Nights' a translation of the earliest extant version of the text (thirteenth- or fourteenth-century), which contains only a fraction of the full text known from nineteenth-century editions. In a polemical preface he denounced the full version as a dilution of a great original by the addition of masses of alien and inferior material. It must subsequently have been pointed out to him that a version of the Arabian Nights that omitted the best known stories would disappoint readers; consequently he then produced the present volume, made up largely of the popular tales 'Sindbad the Sailor', 'Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves', and 'Aladdin and his Lamp' -- even though, as he points out in the preface, the original Arabic texts of 'Ali Baba' and 'Aladdin', if they ever existed, have never been found and we are dependent on an eighteenth-century French 'translation' that is a fine piece of literature but far from authentic. A reader who wants to go beyond Haddawy's first volume would be well advised to go straight to one of the translations of the complete text, which contains much fine material omitted from both Haddawy's volumes. Of these the best known is Richard Burton's and the most readable that of Powys Mathers.
Enthralling.......2003-09-02
When I have started reading this collection of Arabic stories I was very pleasantly surprised by the excellent translation. The language flows smoothly and practically dances on the pages. The translation has engaged me and kept my attention, until I have finished the book alltogether. This rendition couldnt have possibly been improved.
As for the tales, this is not like Disney's Alladin or Sindbad. Do not be deceived into believing that the stories are effulgent with simple innocence. In parts, there is mild violence and subtle obscenties. However subtle, one might still consider them inappropriate for children. To make it simple, if this was a movie it would be rated pg-13. This aspect aside, the stories flow smoothly with enthralling tales of adventure, magic, and of course the cliche themes of love. Even though the tales of this book have been displayed on television, this rendition flavors them with fresh originality. The only regret is that one wont be guessing about the outcome of the adventures as the ending has been millions of times entrusted to the media and us...
Lovely, magical translation.......2001-07-11
This translation of some of the most beloved tales of the Arabian nights is irresistable.
Customer Reviews:
Eastern tales that have seized the Western mind!.......2001-07-03
The Tales from the Arabian Nights are ancient stories of romance, suspense, mystery, magic and adventure originating from Persia, India and Arabia, originally functioning as the daily entertainment of ordinary people. They are woven together under the premise that they saved the life of Shahrazad, a queen whose husband executed each of his new wives after one night of marriage. By beginning an exciting story every evening, but withholding the ending, Shahrazad was able to convince the breathless king to spare her for another day until the next installment. Of course, after 1001 nights of devious story-telling, she had saved her life forever.
First introduced to the Western world in the eighteenth century, these stories have attained great popularity, and been retold many times, with "Aladdin" even being made into a Disney film. This collection features only a small selection of the best and most popular tales. Unlike many editions, it doesn't reflect the contemporary versions of the stories, but seeks to be faithful to the authentic Arabic sources. N.J. Dawood is well-equipped to retell these stories from the original Arabic. Born in Baghdad, Dawood attained a reputation as a scholar and received a university education in London. Amongst other projects he has translated "The Koran" and a complete collection of "Tales from the Thousand and One Nights."
Because this version intends to be faithful to the original Arabic, readers should not expect a sanitized Western interpretation. If you are looking for a fresh style that brings these stories to life for children in a modern Western audience, this is likely not the edition for you. These stories are unashamedly Arabic in character, and the religious aspect (Islam) is dominant throughout, where health and wealth, wine and women are bestowed as the blessing of Allah for obedience. But despite this, these stories continue to capture the Western imagination. Expect to read stories about powerful genies (jinees), magical lamps, talking animals, distant voyages, and impossible adventures.
This volume (a companion to "Aladdin and Other Tales from The Arabian Nights") contains the well-known stories of the seven voyages of "Sinbad the Sailor", and "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves". Also represented are the lesser-known but equally fascinating "Tale of the Hunchback" and "The Barber of Baghdad". A great opportunity to read stories that have stood the test of time in another culture - these are classics, and make a good introduction to the original cultural flavour of "Tales from the Arabian Nights"!
Customer Reviews:
Average Light Comic Fantasy .......2007-09-24
I really wanted to enjoy this book. The basic idea is wonderful: the real dirt on Sinbad the Sailor, as told by his less famous companion Sinbad the Dirt-Poor Porter. Why must Sinbad (the Sailor) keep going on dangerous voyages if he each time he finds greater wealth than any sultan?
The book has many characters for Sinbad to outwit, cozen or accidentally ally with: Ozzi the homicidal genii, the long-suffering Jaffar, the incredible two-headed Cyclops. Unfortunately, each has only one joke and an entire book in which to repeat it.
This would have made a delightful novelette or a killer short story, but appears padded out to meet the publisher's requirements. The author seems to hint at this in the continuing joke that Sinbad's audience falls asleep at his endless repetition of similar stories.
I can recommend this book as moderately amusing in the way that a TV sitcom is. Early on, you soon know what you're getting and if you like it, you can expect more of the same right until the series is cancelled.
I just wish there was a "best-of" version.
Funny, fantastic - lots of adventure and quirks.........1998-08-26
Everyone knows the stories about Sinbad the Sailor,but who knew about Sinbad the Porter who had aspirations to be an accountant? Dragged into one of the famous sailors' adventures Sinbad the Porter is entangled in one of the most amusing tales that rivals the sailors own. I thought that this was one of the most amusing and clever Sinbad that I have read.The characters are entrancing, funny and almost real! The story flows from one disastrous adventure to another pulling the reader along for a most enjoyable ride! Well worth the effort!
Average customer rating:
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The Other Sinbad Craig Shaw Gardener
Manufacturer: HEADLINE
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books | Classics | Comic | Contemporary | Literary
ASIN: 0747279748 |
Books:
- Potshot (Spenser)
- Reckless Abandon
- Rita Mae Brown: Three Mrs. Murphy Mysteries: Wish You Were Here; Rest in Pieces; Murder at Monticello
- Safe House: A Burke Novel
- Santa Fe Rules
- Sentenced to Die: Until Proven Guilty, Injustice for All, Trial by Fury
- She's Not There: A Life in Two Genders
- Silent Joe: A Novel
- Sins of the Wolf (William Monk Novels)
- Sleep, Pale Sister (P.S.)
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Too Many Crooks Spoil the Broth (PennDutch Inn Mystery)
Just Plain Pickled to Death (Pennsylvania Dutch Mysteries with Recipes)
Eat, Drink and Be Wary (PennDutch Inn Mystery)
The Crepes of Wrath (Pennsylvania Dutch Mysteries with Recipes)
Between a Wok and a Hard Place (PennDutch Inn Mystery)
