'The Lighthouse Keeper'
By James Michael PrattSt. Martin's, $23.95
This is the second novel by local businessman and motivational speaker James Michael Pratt, whose "The Last Valentine" was compared with "The Bridges of Madison County." This one tells the story of loves and tragedies within an Irish-American family.
Peter O'Banyon is the child of Irish immigrants killed in a tragic accident, leaving him to live with an uncle, also an Irish immigrant and keeper of the Port Hope Lighthouse in Massachusetts.
Peter grows up to marry his childhood sweetheart, Anna. His soul is tested by participation in World War II, then he faces more tragedy when he returns home and tries to put to the test the lessons he has learned from the lighthouse keeper. The symbol of light is often used as a way to combat difficulties.
This is an emotional novel, written simply, after the manner of Nicholas Sparks ("Message in a Bottle"), but without his flair for storytelling. Many will shed major tears as they read, but others will have difficulty relating to the stereotypical Irish dialogue. -- Dennis Lythgoe
'Jackie, Ethel, Joan: Women of Camelot'
By J. Randy Taraborrelli
Warner, $25.95
The author, who also wrote "Sinatra: A Life," was intent on capturing the relationships and troubles of the spouses of the three political Kennedy brothers, Jack, Bobby and Ted. Taraborrelli has consulted numerous oral histories and conducted many interviews of his own, but the result is a gigantic soap opera.
The author certainly succeeds in humanizing all three women, while demonizing their famous husbands. He tells his story using dialogue that is either invented or paraphrased from letters, documents or interviews. Much of the time it is impossible to tell the source of the statement, but the author quotes Ted talking to Joan, Jackie talking to Ethel and every other imaginable combination, as if overheard by an omniscient witness.
The book reads very well and should be interesting to those who enjoy romantic, tragic novels. While much of what is said may very well be true, there is not enough attribution to be sure. This book will never take its place with other legitimate biographies of the Kennedys. -- Dennis Lythgoe
'Beauty Fades, Dumb is Forever: The Making of a Happy Woman'
By Judge Judy Sheindlin
Harper, $12.00
A no-nonsense, retired supervising judge for Manhattan Family Court in New York City, Judge Judy, as she is called on television, is a popular personality. She is famous for being funny, quick-tempered and bluntly honest.
In this book, her second, she advises women not to "hide their lights under a bushel" or "put their brains in a vault" in order to be more attractive to men. She saw numerous women in family court who fell into that syndrome and is convinced that women must stop being doormats, start making intelligent decisions on their own and become the strong, self-reliant individuals they are meant to be. -- Dennis Lythgoe