With the publication of Oveta
Culp Hobby - Colonel, Cabinet Member, Philanthropist, author Debra Winegarten
has proven two things. First, Texas women are, and have been since they first
set foot in Texas, absolute forces of nature; and Debra (pictured below, top right, with my book club) can write like nobody’s
business, and has the “grit” to write best sellers.
Before reading this huge (in appeal) yet tiny (156 page) book,
my only solid context for the Hobby name was a few goose bump moments when I
was in former Lieutenant Governor Bill Hobby’s presence (Oveta Culp Hobby’s son). I
knew his father had been governor of Texas, and I knew Bill was highly
respected, but until I read Winegarten’s book, I had no idea that his mother was
anything more than “just” his mother.
Although she never completed her post-secondary
education, this autodidact became the first secretary of the US
Department of Health, Education and Welfare (US-DHHS), first director of the Women’s
Army Corps (WAC), and chair of the board of the Houston Post. In her early
career, Culp Hobby became a highly respected
parliamentarian of the Texas House of Representatives. In 1931, at the age of 26, she married widowed
47-year-old former Texas Governor William P. Hobby when he was the editor of
the Houston Post. Other than an incident in which Culp Hobby, in spite of her
own injuries, pulled her critically injured husband and the pilot (who
subsequently died from his injuries) from their crashed airplane, what
impressed me most about this extraordinary woman was her service in the
establishment of WACs. Winegarten’s enthralling story of Culp Hobby told of
many, many long hours working to help
fill the non-combat needs of the WWII war effort when every minute equated to
lives lost. I was particularly impressed with her tenacity and forcefulness in
making sure that women in the WACs, including women of color who prior to Culp
Hobby’s intervention were systematically de-prioritized, had uniforms equal in quality and warmth to
military men.
Read Oveta Culp Hobby
- Colonel, Cabinet Member, Philanthropist, and as important, make sure your
children read it, as this is a story of a real super-hero.
Dead Wake by Erik Larson
Erik Larson has a unparalleled talent for turning academic
history and exhaustive research into enthralling mystery. His books about the
1900 Galveston hurricane (Isaac’s Storm)
and the 1893 World’s Fair (Devil In The
White City) are two nonfiction books with the intrigue of a Patricia
Highsmith (The Talented Mr. Ripley)
or Daphne
du Maurier (Rebecca), and the literary gravitas of an Ernest
Hemingway (The Old Man and the Sea)
or Ann Patchett (Bel Canto). Dead Wake, which is Larson’s story of
the May 7, 1915, German torpedoing of the 787-foot superliner Lusitania, which was traveling from New York to Liverpool, is no exception.
You may think you know all you need to know about the grim history of
the sinking of the Lusitania, but I suggest you do not. To begin with, you have the conspiracy theory
that the English manipulated the sinking of the Lusitania to lure the Americans
into the fight against Germany (128 American’s died as a result of the
sinking). But even if that plot intrigue didn’t exist, you would enjoy this
book because Larson doesn’t just tell the story, he puts you into the story.
You feel the rhythmic rocking of the boat and the sun-kissed ocean breeze. You
see blonde curls suspended in white ribbon as the children play games on the
ship deck. You sense the ever so slight hesitation as the German U-boat captain
considers his actions before ordering the launch of the torpedo. You watch in
horror as reality slowly blooms on the faces of families who will never again
see each other. Larson helps us look beyond the surface of tragedy to see the
people, and that is always the heart of a well-told story. If you have the
patience to let drama unfold in the context of beautiful writing, in spite of
knowing the oncoming outcome, you will enjoy Dead Wake.
The Midnight Plan of the Repo Man by W. Bruce Cameron
This was a surprisingly fun little book that allows you to not take it too seriously. Bruce Cameron is a playful writer, who imbues his characters with quirkiness and unexpected mannerisms. Like what you ask? Like, none of the characters are handsome or beautiful or rich or adventuresome or even particularly scary or interesting. Well, except the dead guy who lives in the main character Ruddy McCann’s head. So, the story is about a murder in a small town, but honestly it really doesn’t even matter what the story is about because Bruce Cameron and his main characters are all laugh-out-loud, go nowhere, fun characters. Oh, and I loved the taxidermied bear in the bar.
Gods and Kings: The Rise and Fall of Alexander McQueen and John Galliano by Dana Thomas
Alexander McQueen and John Galliano’s brilliant fashion sensibilities
advanced them to the top of the design world at Dior and Givenchy. But the
same creative intensity that made them “Gods and Kings” of the unprecedented growth in the fashion industry they caused, also eventually rendered them incapable of living normal lives.
Alexander McQueen, trained as a tailor, was the master of
fabric and construction, designing clothes that every woman wanted to wear.
Galliano’s designs based in unique romanticism brought the design world to their
knees. They both turned the clothing industry into theater, changing forever
the way seasonal designs are presented to the world. The stories of their
insanely elaborate fashion shows are legendary. Imagine vats of blood and
techno-lighting, hundreds of thousands of dollars spent on flowers, and
hours-long late starts and you have some sense of the bizarre world in which they
functioned. Sadly, McQueen’s life ended with suicide, and Galliano’s career careened out of control due to substance abuse. Whether you care anything about
fashion or designers, this is a well-written and interesting story about two
fascinating and creative, yet tragic characters, and it is an inside look at an
industry that is like none other. I enjoyed this book and believe you will
too.
Head Case: My Brain and Other Wonders by Cole Cohen
When you have a hole in your brain the size of a large
lemon, life is not going to be easy. In this pretty fascinating book, Cole
Cohen tells the relatively unemotional story of how, for the first twenty-six years of her life, she
was diagnosed with one learning disorder after another and put on medication
after medication by physicians who really didn’t have a clue what was wrong
with her. As long as she was a child and living with her parents, it
was mostly just difficult and made life for her and her parents a series of
unanswered questions and concerns. But when she became an adult and expected to
live life independently, it became a huge issue. The primary disability that impacted every aspect of her life was related to time and space. She couldn’t drive, she
couldn’t make change, she couldn’t remember where
anything was, she couldn’t navigate a grocery store or much less a city - all of which made it impossible for her to keep a job. She
just migrated from therapist to therapist, trying to reconcile her inexplicable,
undiagnosed problem.
Then, although it sort of defies logic that it would take 26 years to find
a huge hole in someone’s brain, Cole is finally scheduled for an MRI, and bingo! There it is – a very big hole in her brain. The doctor freaks because he can’t
understand why she is still alive. But Cole and her parents are just relieved
to have an explanation. The story doesn’t really go anywhere, and reading this
book felt like I was “rubbernecking,” but Cohen’s story is mesmerizing
and well-written considering her young age and, well, considering the
brain hole.
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