Me, My Hair, and I: Twenty-seven Women Untangle an Obsession edited by Elizabeth Benedict

We all have it. Some of us love it and others of us hate it. It can be short or long, stick straight, wavy, or Shirley Temple curly. With the added frizz of a humid day, it can make you look like you have a poodle sitting on top of your head. It gets tangled and messy. And don't even get started on the plethora of colors it can be. Hair.

Ask many women and at some point in their life, they're bound to complain about their hair. What's all the fuss about? In the new book, Me, My Hair, and I: Twenty-seven Women Untangle an Obsession, edited by Elizabeth Benedict, the topic of, not only hair, but sexuality, feminism, culture are discussed. The authors, coming from all different races, religions, and socioeconomic backgrounds make the argument that hair is often tied to who a woman is. For Suleika Jaouad losing her hair during chemotherapy made her think back about how as growing up as Tunisian woman she wanted to badly to assimilate that she tried to put blonde in her jet black hair. Hasidic Jew Deborah Feldman begged her bubbe (grandmother in Yiddish) for short hair. When her grandmother said no, Feldman realized the implications hair and the Holocaust had left on her Holocaust survivor grandmother.

Twenty-seven different women all talk about their hair, and as a result this book takes an interesting look at what it's like to be a woman. While each of these women come from different backgrounds, there is one thing they all have in common--their hair.

In the Unlikely Event by Judy Blume

It's 1952 in Elizabeth, New Jersey. World War II has just ended and life in suburbia has just begun, but for residents of Elizabeth, New Jersey the shock and horror of previous years aren't over. In an unlikely event, three passenger planes enroute to Newark airport, crash in the small town of Elizabeth. In the Unlikely Event primarily tells the story of Miri Ammerman, a young woman, trying to figure out life as a teenager. Suddenly her world changes following the three unconnected plane crashes. Although much of the story is told through Miri, Judy Blume weaves together the lives and stories of three generations of family, friends, and strangers as they deal with first loves, marriages, and friendships. The story, which develops around the plane crashes, is so much more than that. It provides a glimpse into the lives of several families, often who try desperately to keep secrets hidden away. It's a close look at the early 1950s when things like sex, racial profiling, and mental illness were the secrets that stayed hidden.

In the Unlikely Event, is Judy Blume's third adult novel. Typically known for writing children's books Blume is as in her element with adult books. Though this is a work of historical fiction, Blume writes what she knows. Having grown up in Elizabeth, New Jersey,  witnessing the plane crashes she writes as if it all happened yesterday. It's hard not to see a little bit of Judy Blume in fifteen year old Miri Ammerman.

The Man Who Painted the Universe by Ron Lego and Avi Lank

The Man Who Painted the Universe is the story of a man with a passion and his desire to share it with others. Frank Kovak Jr. grew up fascinated by the stars. As a child in Chicago, he loved the Adler Planetarium. He  also painted glow-in-the-dark constellations on his bedroom walls and built his own backyard observatory. Frank's passion grew as he matured. Eventually he bought a small piece of land in northern Wisconsin. Away from city lights, this was an ideal place to observe the stars. He tried to share his passion with others--church and youth groups. But often the weather would interfere--fog or clouds, or rain or cold. So he spent years building and hand painting a 22-foot rotating globe planetarium near Rhinelander, Wisconsin. He financed his project with his own money; he created it with his own ingenuity and built it with his skills in the manual arts. The result is that, despite his lack of a college degree of any kind, he is running a planetarium of his own. In 2008 he opened it to the public and now tiny Monico, Wisconsin has its own tourist attraction. Frank Kovak's story is unique and authors Ron Lego and Avi Lank have told it with respect and empathy. They have reported a Wisconsin success story.  

The Cake Therapist by Judith Fertig

With her marriage crumbling, Claire "Neely" O'Neil leaves New York to move back to her hometown of Millcreek Valley, Ohio. Using her amazing talents as a pastry chef, Claire opens Rainbow Cake, a quaint little bakery specializing in wedding cakes. Like any good chef, Claire has a great palette. With a little bit of magical realism, she believes that certain flavors just go hand in hand with certain feelings. With her ability to create amazing flavor profiles, it's easy to see why Rainbow Cake soon becomes more than just a charming, little bakery.

Flashback to the early 1900s for the second part of this story, which follows sisters Olive and Edie growing up through the Great Depression and World War II. At first it's difficult to imagine how Claire's story intertwines with Olive and Edie, but that's what makes this book so difficult to put down. Like any small town, Millcreek Valley has secrets and it's only a matter of time before they bubble to the surface.

The Cake Therapist is Judith Fertig's first work of fiction. The author has previously edited several cookbooks, and it's easy to see that cakes and pastries are her specialty. With the language Fertig uses, the pastries and baked goods from Rainbow Cake leave you longing for something delicious. While the author may specialize in cookbooks, it's easy to see she's found a new niche, because The Cake Therapist will soon have a sequel.

Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology by Leah Remini

How does a brassy girl from Brooklyn get involved in and break away from something as controversial as Scientology? Leah Remini wants you to know like most things, it's complicated. Best known for her role on King of Queens, Leah has never backed away from a fight, or thrown herself in to something less than 100%. In Troublemaker, she tells the story of how her family got involved in Scientology, and eventually broke away from the church.

Like all good celebrity memoirs, she doesn't shy away from awkward moments growing up, gives us good backstage gossip, and opens the curtain on the secretive world of Scientology. You can only imagine sitting over coffee (or something stronger) and having her tell stories of her family, Tom Cruise and Dancing with the Stars. 

If Going Clear was a bit academic for you (or thoroughly fascinating), check out Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology by Leah Remini!

Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow

Alexander Hamilton’s name has been appearing in the news for the first time in centuries with the talk of the hit Broadway musical based on his life. And this is the book that sparked it all. Aside from Broadway fans, this book may spark the curiosity of readers interested in American history. The award-winning book, Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow, is a detailed biography of Hamilton and tells us much more than the one fact we all know about him: he was killed in a duel with Aaron Burr. Hamilton was a brilliant thinker and gifted organizer. An illegitimate child, orphaned before he reached his teens, Hamilton used his intelligence and abilities to make his way from St. Kitts island in the Caribbean to King’s College in New York. While there he embraced the cause of the American Revolution and became an invaluable aide to General George Washington. After the war, he was a primary writer of the Federalist Papers, defending the newly written Constitution. He was the first Secretary of the Treasury and established policies that secured the new nation’s economic security. A forward thinking man, he staunchly believed in abolition and philanthropy. He feuded with other patriots (John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, among others) on the direction the country should take.      

He had, of course, his weaknesses, one of which proved to be fatal. Although devoted to his wife and large family, he had an affair with a married woman and paid blackmail to her husband. This information was eventually leaked to the public in a campaign of slander and dirty tricks aimed at destroying Hamilton’s reputation. It ultimately led to Hamilton’s famous and fatal duel with Aaron Burr.         

Alexander Hamilton is admittedly a daunting read at over 700 pages. But Hamilton did so much in his short life, this is the book he deserves. 

Happy New Year!

From all of us at the West Allis Public Library, we wish you and your family a very happy New Year! We will be closed Friday, January 1st (New Year's Day), but will reopen Saturday, January 2nd, 2016 at 9 am.