Real stories from real people
345014
I love this type of reading.  Short real stories from real people sharing interesting and fascinating accounts of their lives.  I could actually picture myself looking in on some of these stories.  For example, in Summer Paramour by Bill Zarchy, I could clearly see the car behind the barn as if I were there.  The writing is EXCELLENT.  I would recommend this book for anyone looking for a quick read in which you can visually see what is happening.
2656264
the words of the participants make the documentary real.
1st hand accounts let us identify with the people involved.
well done.
4966300
What is a personal history? Paula Stallings Yost and Pat McNees ask, in the preface to their rich, engaging anthology, My Words Are Gonna Linger. A personal history is a story from real life, they say, related in the real, authentic voice of the storyteller. But more than that, personal history is a "vital link between the past, present, and future--a wisdom-keeper" that represents not just the individual spirit, but the spirit of families and communities.

And so it is in this collection. These stories open a window into the pasts of forty-nine individuals, but also into the cultures that shaped them and the families and communities that gave them life. Whether it's a woman's story about the fruit her father grew in Brooklyn, or a man's story about photographing the beaches of Iwo Jima from a submarine, or the oral history of an itinerant longshoreman who "used to be as mean as a snake in mating time" or a maker of wooden toys who "cain't read," all these stories (some illustrated with personal photographs) celebrate lives lived with purpose, sensitivity, and hope through times and in circumstances that were often dauntingly, dangerously difficult.

But in their selection and arrangement of these individual stories, Yost and McNees have created an even more meaningful whole. The stories are presented in three sections. Part One contains stories that illustrate a variety of reasons why stories are told: to explain our ancestry, to celebrate an event, to memorialize a person, to record what the world was like, to communicate the past to the future. Flavia Fernandes' story about her parents' arranged wedding in India, for instance, illustrates all these reasons.

Part Two contains stories that demonstrate some of the methods of creating personal stories that capture the voices and experiences of the narrators: journal excerpts, interviews, audio recordings, project collections (such as the Veterans History Project for the Library of Congress), videotapes, and in reminiscence writing groups. These stories bear a powerful stamp of authenticity. "You want to know about when I met Daddy? Let me tell you," Meta Bejzer begins. "I used to be kind of a rough dude to handle, you know?" says James Jermany. Real people. Real voices. Strong voices.

Part Three--"The Many Faces of Personal History"--contains my favorite story: "Coffin Couture," Sally Steinberg's tribute to her father, the "King of Donuts," a flamboyant dresser who wanted to be buried in his Pucci jacket, "a velvet number in a bold, busy, colorful print." It's a story to be savored, remembered--along with a murder mystery, a recollection of Pearl Harbor Day, and the tale of a cake that saved a college (Abilene Christian College), complete with a recipe.

My Words Are Gonna Linger was very much a collaborative project, envisioned and nurtured by Jeanne Archer, the president of the Association of Personal Historians. In 2006, Archer convened a group of volunteers to get the project moving. Stories were submitted by members of the APH, and reviewed and selected by Archer and others, then edited by Paula Yost, who also worked with the graphic artist on book design. Pat McNees served as project manager and assisted with editing.

If you're a fan (as I am) of stories rooted in real life, you will very much enjoy this book. It would also make a delightful gift for the storytellers in your family--and might even give them a few valuable ideas (and some important motivation) for telling their own stories. And if you're a teacher of memoir, reminiscence, or personal history, it would make an excellent addition to your classroom teaching or to your students' reading list. Imaginatively conceived, thoughtfully arranged, and professionally edited and presented, My Words Are Gonna Linger: The Art of Personal History will be a source of pleasure, information, and instruction.

by Susan Wittig Albert
for Story Circle Book Reviews
reviewing books by, for, and about women
2436078
Enjoyed the stories about big stars of the past. The stories made them real people instead of the careful personalities of the big studios
2240152
I read the summary on the back of Lenora's book and it's really interesting! If you like real stories from people lives then you should get this book and read it! I'm really glad I got the chance to meet the author.  Lenora is sweet and she gave me a signed copy of her book!
Thank you!
1815873
The personal accounts from the men who were there makes your respect for what they went through and did for country come alive in the stories highlighted in this book.
16411
I have the pleasure of talking with Mr. Rains occasionally, and I have to say that there is more than a kernel of truth and actual circumstance in his stories.  He tells them very nicely, too.  Peopled with those who lived on the reservations, and in the mining camps of South Dakota and the hills of Kentucky we have, in a fictionalized form, real people. They don't always act the way we think people should act, but then, when have humans ever done that consistently?  It is nice to hear from a man who can tell a good story from his own life among the individuals he grew up among.
3036232
A great book written by real people. If you like true stories that will bring you closer to God this is a must read!!
2278243
I loved every story in this book.  My favorite part is that these are real life events written by the people who experienced them.  I am recommending it to all my friends.
3099302
I loved this book!  I loved it because it is real, full of real stories about real people.  Having kids, and especially having toddlers, is not all sunshine and roses all the time.  Sometimes it is very trying, sometimes it is hysterically funny.  Sometimes you shake your head and think, "I can't believe someone who is only as tall as my knee rules my life!"  But it is always an honour and a privilege to part of this amazing stage in your child's life.  This is a collection of stories, told with love, about the good bits, the scary bits and the hysterically funny bits. Every parent who has ever lived through the toddler years will be nodding their heads and laughing in recognition.  And for those who have yet to get to the toddler stage..... don't say you haven't been warned ;-)
4451373
I have laughed, cried and rejoiced with the charactersas if they were real people. The stories are fiction, their impact is real.
2856691
It is like listening to a Friend tell stories of their life experiences.  It is written in a simple yet interesting style
3202236
Zable's book takes place in a milk bar/coffee lounge in St. Kilda, a suburb of Melbourne AU.  Rather, the people on whom the book is based are there - the story takes place in the present (when he interviewed the survivors-between 1990 and 2000, I think) and in the time of WWII.  The stories these Jewish immigrants to Australia share are raw, a way of developing a new family, and "in your face" as Zable told our class - the survivors lost everything in the concentration camps except the will to live and rebuilt their lives in Melbourne.  Their stories come to light (the stories were already alive) in Zable's book, as does the love that Masha and Avram share - they were the owners of Cafe S. when the book was written.  The stories are gripping; it's a 5 hankie book in my estimation.  While the book is a fictionalized account of what happened to these folks (characters are composites for example), the events are real.  Zable is a wonderful story teller and feels we all have a story to tell, but in order to be story tellers, we have to be excellent listeners.  He is an excellent listener.  If you are interested in stories of human behavior, history, or the Holocaust, then this is a book well worth reading.
1285781
What an amazing set of stories - I thoroughly enjoy each of the segments and felt like I was brought into each of these people's lives.  The first hand accounts along with the pictures made it a very captivating read.  Enjoy this book!!
2973637
Liked the writing.  Purchased this book because I encountered this man in the building where I work several months back.  I guess we work in the same building.  I would like to tell him that I downloaded the book that night, but only just read recently.  I overheard on the elevator that he had written a book while listening to a conversation he was having with one of his co-workers.  That conversation prompted me to  ask him the name.  I really did like the writing style and I would like to thank him for sharing his story.  It would not be an easy story for most people to share.  Real people stories ARE better than fiction.  I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys non-fiction, or anyone for that matter.
1491432
Ben Hesse obviously spent a lot of time interviewing the 'real people' of Jenkintown.  Great stories and photos, I real enjoyed this peek into a town as seen by its residents.

Check out the Music CD, it goes hand in hand with the book.  Nice hand crafted music, the book explains all the songs.  It has the same title as the book.
3596878
This anthology is packed with well written short stories, most true life with names changed but very relevant. Behind the eyes of every inmate in the Ohio State Correctional Facility is a story. In Tainted Mirrors the reader takes a journey down cell block halls to find out how many of the inmates got there from their own voice. When one puts this book down they will get more than what they bargained for as it's not only conversation they will receive but testimony and inspiration.

 I enjoyed the testimonies and seeing how many of the inmates in the book who shared their stories weren't placing blame. They were accepting the errors of their past and looking forward to the future no matter what it might hold. I would highly recommend this book to those who have young people in their life but need some guidance. The story I enjoyed the most was the story of Karma.

I would suggest in future focusing on fewer stories per book giving the authors more time to detail their story. Because there were so many stories in the book it was sometimes difficult to follow. I did however enjoy the bios of all the contributors in the back.

I applaud the publisher for stepping out and giving these inmates a way to let their light shine and feel the accomplishment of being published.