Darrow's Nightmare: The Forgotten Story of America's Most Famous Trial Lawyer (Los Angeles 1911-1913) by Nelson Johnson- BOOK BEGINNINGS

 

BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAYS

It's time again to share the opening sentences (or so) of the books we are reading this week. What are you reading?

I have a lawyer book to share this week since I've had a very lawyerly week. I've been sitting through three days of (Zoom) court hearings in the Boy Scouts of America's bankruptcy case. I even got to argue one day! Although I've been suing the Boy Scouts for sex abuse since 2007, and even won a $20 million verdict against them, this bankruptcy case is the biggest legal battle I've ever been a part of. It's such a complicated mess!

MY BOOK BEGINNING

From Darrow's Nightmare:

Upon return to Chicago in January 1908, Clarence's priority was his law practice double dash namely, earning an income.

-- Darrow's Nightmare: The Forgotten Story of America's Most Famous Trial Lawyer (Los Angeles 1911-1913) by Nelson Johnson (Rosetta Books). This one came out a few months ago. Nelson Johnson wrote Boardwalk Empire that was adapted into such a terrific TV show.

Clarence Darrow was America's most famous criminal trial attorney in the first half of the Twentieth Century. Darrow's Nightmare is the nonfiction account of how Darrow was almost a convicted of crimes himself. Darrow went to Los Angeles in 1911 to defend two union agitators on trial for mass murder. While there, he the District Attorney indicted and tried Darrow for bribing a juror. A conviction would have ended his career as a lawyer almost before it got off the ground.

YOUR BOOK BEGINNINGS

Please leave a link to your Book Beginnings post in the linky box below. Please use the #bookbeginnings hashtag if you share on social media.

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THE FRIDAY 56

Freda at Freda's Voice hosts another teaser event on Fridays. Participants share a two-sentence teaser from page 56 of the book they are reading -- or from 56% of the way through the audiobook or ebook. Please visit Freda's Voice for details and to leave a link to your post.

MY FRIDAY 56

From Darrow's Nightmare:

He viewed the courtroom as a battlefield; his profession was a means to pursue economic justice for the working class. Though Darrow was cynical about much of the law, he acted practically when it came to making a living.

I think most lawyers, at least litigators, view the courtroom as a battlefield. And lawyers with a plaintiffs' civil practice, like me, view the law as a means of pursuing economic justice for our clients. Civil lawsuits only offer economic justice. We can only sue for money to compensate for their injuries and their loss. The law isn't a time machine -- we can't get back our clients' former lives for them. The trick is to not grow cynical. 

I Have Not Loved You With My Whole Heart by Cris Harris - BOOK BEGINNINGS

 

BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAYS

Do you read memoirs? 

I love a good memoir. I'm not all that keen on memoirs by famous people. I prefer memoirs by regular people with interesting stories to tell about their own experiences. How about you?

My book beginning this week is from a new memoir. What are you reading this week? Please share the opening sentence (or so) for Book Beginnings on Fridays. Add the link to your blog or social media post in the linky box below. 

MY BOOK BEGINNING

"And now, boys," he says, "let's get the boat. Track it down and bring it home." He smiles, eyes watery and bright, feverish under the little velvet fez he has taken to wearing in this last year.

-- I Have Not Loved You With My Whole Heart by Cris Harris (OSU Press). I don't usually give more than the very first sentence, but when I saw that bit about the fez, I couldn't resist including it. 

Cris Harris grew up in a difficult household with an alcoholic father, learning to live with the uncertainty, chaos, and neglect of living with addiction. What he didn't expect was that his father, an Episcopalian priest, would come out as gay during the height of the AIDS crisis and die of HIV in 1995. This gripping memoir will hit home for anyone who has grappled with complicated relationships to faith, had family members come out late in life, or lost loved ones to AIDS.

 YOUR BOOK BEGINNINGS

Please add the link to your Book Beginnings post below. If you share on SM, please use the #bookbeginnings hashtag so we can find each other. 

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THE FRIDAY 56

The Friday 56 hosted by Freda's Voice is a natural tie in with this event and there is a lot of cross over, so many people combine the two. The idea is to post a teaser from page 56 of the book you are reading and share a link to your post. Find details and the Linky for your Friday 56 post on Freda’s Voice.

MY FRIDAY 56

From I Have Not Loved You With All My Heart:

Among the working-class, east-side parishioners, he was more at ease than back at Ascension Chapel. It was an Episcopal church, so there would still be mimosas on Easter morning after the vigil, but when they held a night of English and Irish song and dance, they also served Old English 800 in big bottles. 

Oh my. The evangelical churches I grew up in never served OE8 40s! 

Welcome to Kamini and Shoal Water -- Two New Books -- BOOK BEGINNINGS

 

BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAYS

The light is starting to change and the first hints of fall are in the air. I love this time of year, with that back-to-school feeling. 

What books captured your attention this week? Please share the first sentence (or so) here on Book Beginnings on Fridays. Leave the link to your blog or social media post in the Linky box below. 

To celebrate the impending change of seasons, I am highlighting two new novels, both coming out in October. Both are also set in northern parts of Canada, so they make a good pairing.

MY BOOK BEGINNINGS

From Welcome to Kamini: 

Two figures pushed off from the dock in a canoe after sunset.

-- Welcome to Kamini by Don Engebretson. I like that first sentence, how about you? It sets a scene and I immediately want to know more.

Engebretson is a seasoned magazine and short story writer. Welcome to Kamini is his debut novel. The protagonist heads to the Canadian woods of northern Ontario to get over his failed marriage and professional tailspin. There he meets three powerful women and an Ojibwe fishing guide and who change his plans, and his life.

This one comes out October 1 from Guernica Editions and is available for pre-order now.

From Shoal Water:

The dark forbidding clouds closed in, the wind, its high-pitched universe.

-- Shoal Water by Kip Robinson Greenthal. This beginning is more atmospheric, and I like it too!

This beautiful debut novel is the story of Kate and her husband who move from New York City to a fishing village in Nova Scotia and open a book store. While getting to know their new community, Kate must confront ghosts of the past -- metaphorical and literal. Perfect for October!

Greenthal won the 2020 Landmark Prize for fiction for Shoal Water. The prize is publication by Homebound Publications. Shoal Water comes out on October 12, and you can pre-order now.

YOUR BOOK BEGINNINGS

Please add your link below. If you share on SM, please use the #bookbeginnings hashtag.

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THE FRIDAY 56

Freda at Freda's Voice hosts another teaser event on Fridays. Participants share a two-sentence teaser from page 56 of the book they are reading -- or from 56% of the way through the audiobook or ebook. Please visit Freda's Voice for details and to leave a link to your post.

MY FRIDAY 56

From Welcome to Kamini:

Closing her eyes, she twirled her finger twice in the air and placed it on the map. . . . Only when removing her finger did she find it had landed smack dab on a tiny dot labeled Kamini.

From Shoal Water:

Andy walked down the road toward the dory shop built alongside the Greenport wharf. Everywhere was fog and the smell of fish.

I can't wait for cool, rainy weather to get here when I plan to curl up with both of these books. 

August Wrap Up -- My August Books

AUGUST WRAP UP

What was your reading like last month? The dog days found me reading more fiction and lighter nonfiction, just enjoying the summer vibe. How about you? 

Here are the ten books I read in August, in the order I read them, not the order they are lined up in the picture. I don't usually review the books I read, so don't analyze their literary merit. My rating reflects only my personal preference for the book.

MY AUGUST BOOKS

Bridge of Sighs by Richard Russo is a shaggy dog of a family saga and I loved it. I've been mixing up long and short books this year and appreciating both. This one has been on my TBR shelf forever and I am happy to finally get to it. 🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

Fever Pitch by Nick Hornby proves that he can make anything worth reading, even 250 pages about 1968-1992 soccer games. 🌹🌹🌹🌹

Passenger to Frankfurt is one of Agatha Christie’s stand alone spy novels. It is unlike any of her other book I've read and I liked it a lot. I thought the story echoed some of the today's political strife. 🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

Wry Martinis by Christopher Buckley is a collection of his earlier essays, pulled together after the success of Thank You For Smoking. A mixed bag, but enjoyable. 🌹🌹🌹1/2

Labyrinth by Kate Mosse is a solid historical fiction adventure story with a modern day braided narrative and a Holy Grail theme. It wasn't my favorite, but it was entertaining and I'm happy to clear it off my TBR shelf. 🌹🌹🌹1/2

Strapless: John Singer Sargent and the Fall of Madame X by Deborah Davis. This biography of Virginie Gautreau, the woman in Sargent's famous portrait, was my favorite book last month. I read it for book club and then loaned it to another club member, which is why it isn't in the picture. 🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty isn't in the picture because I read it with my ears. I love all her books and read them all as audiobooks because I like the Australian accent. 🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

Anxious People by Fredrik Backman I read for my other book club and passed on to my sister. I liked it a lot. 🌹🌹🌹🌹

The Woman Who Went to Bed For a Year by Sue Townsend. I wanted to like this more than I did. Bits made me laugh, but I found it more depressing than funny. 🌹🌹🌹

The Darlings by Christina Alger is a Wall Street story inspired by Bernie Madoff. It’s stylish, intricate, and well done, although you have to skate over a few patches of thin credulity in the middle. 🌹🌹🌹🌹

MY FAVORITE COVER OF THE MONTH

You Are Enough! Reclaiming Your Career and Your Life with Purpose, Passion, and Unapologetic Authenticity by Charlene Wheeless - BOOK BEGINNINGS

 

BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAYS

Look at those Naked Ladies! We were in Mendocino last week and the town was awash with these beautiful belladonna amaryllis. They bloom in Mendocino in August, after their spring leaves have died away. They were spectacular.

Here's some bookish trivia for you. Did you know that Mendocino is where they filmed Murder, She Wrote? That’s right, Mendocino is the stand in for Cabot Cove, murder capital of America. Which makes it the most deadly spot on the planet outside Midsomer County, England.

It was fun to get away for our first vacation since corona started. But I'm happy to be back home in time for Book Beginnings on Fridays. It's time to share the first sentence (or so) of the books we are reading this week. Please share the link to your Book Beginnings post in the linky box below. 

MY BOOK BEGINNING

I have great respect and admiration for Dr. Angelou (may she rest in peace). But nearly my whole life, and like many women and minorities, I have always had to prove myself or prove something to someone, sometimes for reasons I didn't even understand, let alone accept.

 -- from the author's Introduction, You Are Enough! Reclaiming Your Career and Your Life with Purpose, Passion, and Unapologetic Authenticity by Charlene Wheeless (2021, Mascot Books). 

Those opening lines make sense only when given a little context. The Introduction is headed with a quote by Maya Angelou: "You alone are enough. You have nothing to prove to anybody." That quote sets up the opening sentences and the title of the book.

In her new book, Charlene Wheeless uses memoir and inspirational essays to share the wisdom she's gained from her years as a Black woman executive and cancer survivor.

YOUR BOOK BEGINNINGS

 

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THE FRIDAY 56

Freda at Freda's Voice hosts another teaser event on Fridays. Participants share a two-sentence teaser from page 56 of the book they are reading -- or from 56% of the way through the audiobook or ebook. Please visit Freda's Voice for details and to leave a link to your post.

MY FRIDAY 56

From You Are Enough:

Most champions want to advocate for someone they believe is going to put in the work to be successful. Champions look for people with credibility, confidence, and consistency because champions do not just speak up; they open doors.

I love inspirational, self-help books, especially those with a career focus. I probably like them because I've always had an entrepreneurial approach to my law practice and I started my own firm several years ago. These books give me a boost. Do you read business or career self-help books?