Book Review: In Search of Dracula: The History of Dracula and Vampires ( by Raymond T McNally & Radu Florescu)

 

In Search of Dracula: The History of Dracula and Vampires (revised)   

Author: Radu Florescu and Raymond T McNally

Publisher: Mariner Books

American release date: October 31, 1994

Format/Genre/Length: Hardback/History/320 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★

 

Everyone has heard of the infamous vampire Count Dracula, immortalized by Bram Stoker in his novel Dracula, first published in 1896. But not everyone knows that there was a real Dracula, Vlad Dracula, aka Vlad Tepes, a Wallachian prince who lived in the 15^th century, a powerful ruler who was both feared and admired by people of his time. (And yes, Transylvania is a real place!)

Dracula experts Radu Florescu and Raymond McNally have taken their original book, first published in 1972, and completely revised and updated it. The real Dracula’s story is a fascinating one, filled with violence and intrigue. The authors explore his life and the circumstances that molded his character. The things he did were often cruel, but at the same time he was a product of his times, a violent era filled with wars and shifting political and religious allegiances. It’s hard to know who to trust when even your own family conspires against you, and survival depends on caution and knowing when to act. There is no doubt he did some terrible things, especially impaling many people, innocent women and children among them. But even to this day, he is revered as a hero by people in his own country.

This book delves into his life, as well as the life of author Bram Stoker, who brought the Romanian prince back to life, so to speak, in the form of his vampire count.  Did you know that Stoker was gay? Besides being an author, he was a long-time manager of the famous actor Henry Irving, whom he also had a crush on. In the section on Stoker, the authors talk about the research that went into the writing of Stoker’s novel. They also discuss the vampire on stage, in fiction, and on film.  The appendixes include stories about Dracula told by people of various nationalities. For example, there are the Turkish ambassadors who appeared before him, wearing turbans. When Dracula requested they remove the turbans, the men said they could not for national reasons. So Dracula assisted them in their desire to keep them on by driving nails through the turbans into their heads and sent them back to their sultan. (Keep in mind, Dracula had good reason not to like the sultan, and had been held hostage by him for five years as a boy).

This book was very fascinating, and is a must-have for anyone who enjoys history and Dracula, whether the real one or the fictional one.  These authors are foremost in their field for a reason.

Book Review: Kiyo Sato: From a WWII Japanese Internment Camp to a Life of Service by Connie Goldsmith with Kiyo Sato

 

Kiyo Sato: From a WWII Japanese Interment Camp to a Life of Service     

Author: Connie Goldsmith with Kiyo Sato

Publisher: Twenty-First Century Books

American release date: September 1, 2020

Format/Genre/Length: Hardback/Historical Biography/136 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★

 

December 7, 1941 was a traumatic occasion for all Americans, with the bombing of Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, but especially for those Americans of Japanese heritage. The government, in its overly suspicious infinite wisdom, decided the best thing to do in order to avoid having subversives inside the country, was to round up these citizens and send them to places where they could be closely guarded. For the safety of the nation.

Kiyo Sato was one of nine children of Shinji and Tomomi Sato. Her parents came from Japan and started not only a farm, but a family, in the Sacramento area.  President Franklin Roosevelt signed two executive orders in 1942, ordering the internment of the Japanese Americans on the West Coast.  Perhaps the reasoning was that they were closer to Japan and more likely to be spies. The Satos were sent to a camp in Poston, Arizona. This is their story, as related by Kiyo Sato, the oldest of the nine siblings, to Connie Goldsmith.

Looking back from a great distance, it sems inconceivable that American citizens could be treated this way simply because of their heritage. Many of them had never even been to Japan and couldn’t speak Japanese. Because they had to leave most everything behind, many of them lost their homes, their livelihoods and most of what they owned, including beloved pets. They were only permitted to bring one suitcase per person. One internment camp was an abandoned racetrack, where people slept in the former horse stalls under very unsanitary conditions.

This is a heartbreaking story, and yet it’s also a story of hope and resilience of spirit, and how one family endured and thrived.  The Japanese have a saying: shikata ga nai – accept what cannot be changed. However, it is appalling to me that this ever happened, and year s later the courts agreed that there was no need for this to take place.  The survivors were awarded reparations, but no amount could change what happened or give them that time back. This country should be ashamed of having their version of the German concentration camps, call them what you will. Hard to take the high moral ground after that.

I am privileged to know the niece of Kiyo Sato, Pamela Sato, who is the person who told me about the book. I think all Americans should know what their country is/was capable of – think Guantanamo Bay. I highly recommend this book. Also, Kiyo wrote a book in her own words, Kiyo’s Story, which I intend to read.

 

Book Review: Missouri's Forgotten Heroes by Ross Malone

Missouri’s Forgotten Heroes    

Author: Ross Malone

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing

American release date: June 28, 2016

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/non-fiction/236 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

There are many books about the famous people in history, the heroes whose lives we study in school, the people we grow up knowing about, famed in song and story. But there are many more unsung heroes we never get a chance to appreciate. This book is about some of those people. And they are all from Missouri, which is a definite plus to me, as I am a native of the state myself.

Missouri’s Forgotten Heroes has many interesting stories to tell. Some of the names may be familiar to residents of Missouri as place names, but the people behind the names are greatly unknown. For example, Albert Lambert (Lambert Airport), John O’Fallon (O’Fallon, Missouri & Illinois), John Mullanphy (various places in Florissant, MO) and Paul Henning (of Beverly Hillbillies and Petticoat Junction fame).

There are stories about athletes and stories about pioneers, people who endured great hardships and persevered despite the odds against them. These people are not perfect, many of them have flaws, and they are all human. But that doesn’t matter. In some way, they were all heroes.

This was an interesting book from start to finish. I enjoyed reading about unsung heroes from my own state. I love history, and love to read about it, and this book is a great addition to my library. As a bonus, I received an autographed copy, how great is that? This is my first time reading Ross Malone, but it won’t be my last time. He has a wonderful way of telling a story that makes you feel as if you are there, listening to him. I would love to attend a class taught by him, or a lecture.

The only criticism I can make is that the book would have benefited with a little more editing, but that is not an authorial flaw, and I won’t ding him on that. I’ve seen so-called professional books with similar problems.

If you like history, if you are from Missouri, or if you just like to root for the underdog, this book is for you.

AMC's Got it Going on (Beware of spoiler)

AMC has two new hits on its hands, and you can find both series on Sunday nights - The Walking Dead, now in its second season, and the new offering, Hell on Wheels. Both original, and both well done shows in completely different genres. Kudos to AMC for going outside of the box and doing more than simply showing movies. I hope that they find more such worthy candidates in the future, although not to the exclusion of the movies, of course.

Hell on Wheels is a very visually appealing series. I enjoy the look of it, as well as the feel of it. The character development is great. There's a great deal of social commentary here, threaded in with the history. It doesn't sugarcoat the attitudes of the times toward the various groups; they're all represented here. From the former slaves to the Indians, to women and Christians and even the former Confederate soldiers who are simply trying to get by. ****Spoilers ahead*****  Last episode, we saw Cullen kill the foreman of the railroad gang, because of what he did to his wife, for which he was incarcerated by the Big Swede (who's actually Norwegian, but that's another story), made his escape and boldly asked Colm Meaney for the dead man's job - and got it. This week we watch as he finds the clue to the other man he needs to kill to avenge his wife's death. And we see more of the widow with the plans. And the two Irish brothers who run the show, and are looking to make their fortune. I love history, and this series just brings it to life very well. I hope it continues for some time to come.

As for The Walking Dead - next week is the mid-season finale (it seems as though most of the shows are shutting down until January - bummer!) This week, we watched as Lori tried to abort the baby she carries, and fails, and confesses to Rick about her and Shane. His reaction wasn't what I expected. Also we learn about the walkers in the barn and why they're there. Sophia has been missing for several episodes now - I have to wonder if she'll ever be found. Everyone is learning to defend themselves, and Carl wants to learn too. He has a tendency to turn to Shane for parental permission, and I have to wonder if this will create friction between Shane and Rick at some point. It's a harsh post-apocalyptic world, one I'm not sure I'd want to survive in. It's also about the survival of the human spirit.

I'm really enjoying Grimm, Friday nights on NBC. Last week's episode was Lonelyhearts and dealt with a Bluebeard who attracted women to himself and killed them. In this episode we saw more of Captain Renard, in his dealings with a grim reaper - my speculation is that the Captain is the devil. We'll see. I'm really liking Wolfy more and more, he makes a great, albeit unwilling sidekick, to Nick. I hope this show continues for a while. I believe more scripts have been ordered.

Last night the theme of Next Iron Chef was Improvisation, as the chefs were taken to a comedy club in LA, where Kevin Nealon was the host. With the participation of the audience, he made a list of ingredients, and pared it down to four which the chefs had to use in their challenge - octopus, kumquats, tortillas, and marshmallows. Quite the challenge! The winner of that challenge was Chef Chiarello. At the bottom were Chefs Samuellson, Zakarian and MacMillan, but Marcus lived to cook another day, and the other two had to face off. The secret ingredient was coconut. Chef Geoffrey did two dishes, despite the repeated warnings from the judges that it's not a good thing to do. Luckily, he made something really really good, and he squeaked through. Good-bye Chef MacMillan. Sorry, not sobbing over this one. I like seeing more of chefs I never got the chance to actually see in action - such as Alex and Geoffrey. I think both are strong contenders, but I think Anne Burrell is even more so. From now on, the competition will only get fiercer.

Alas for no Sweet Genius, but I hear they are recruiting cast members for a second season, so that's wonderful news. As I mentioned before, Justified will be back in January. A lot of shows are going on hiatus til then, I've noticed. I hope Californication comes back soon, and The Borgias. Cesare Borgia - well, he's to die for, he's so hot.

My dream job would be to someday have a series of my own on cable. I dream of seeing To The Max as a series. I'd also love to do a historical, something that makes history more real and interesting to people. Most history teachers seem determined to make their students dislike it because of the way they teach it. If I'd ever have become a teacher, it would have been history, I love it that much. And I'd have tried to make it alive and real, like it was when it happened. I hope I do that with the historicals that I write, anyway.

That's all for now. Back to editing and writing! Working on something secret (not writing, a craft type thing), but I can't say too much, it's a secret. When I'm done, I'll take a picture and post it. Home made gifts rule, I think.

Until next time, take care!
♥ Julie