A riveting tale of unfathomable success great joy deep pain, and redemption that can come only from above. From a working-class background in North Carolina to a job as a cook and club singer in Nashville to his “overnight success” with his smash 1986 album Storms of Life–which launched the neotraditional movement in country music–Randy’s first three decades are a true rags-to-riches story. But in 2009, this seemingly charmed life began a downward spiral. His marriage dissolved, he discovered that his finances had unraveled, and his struggles with anger led to alcohol abuse, public embarrassment, and even police arrest in 2012.
Then, just as he was putting his life back together, Randy suffered a devastating viral cardiomyopathy that led to a massive stroke which he was not expected to survive. Yet he not only survived but also learned to walk again and, in 2016, accepted his induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame by singing the hymn that explains his life today: “Amazing Grace.”
Filled with never-before-told stories, Forever and Ever, Amen is a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at dizzying success and the miraculous road to restoration.
Reasons I loved this book:
I have been a Randy Travis fan from the beginning of his career, and there was so much I didn’t know about him.
It’s an inspirational story of strength and survival.
You get to see Randy’s sense of humor and a side of his personality the public doesn’t always show.
For anyone who has ever wanted to step into the world of a favorite book, here is a pioneer pilgrimage, a tribute to Laura Ingalls Wilder, and a hilarious account of butter-churning obsession.
Wendy McClure is on a quest to find the world of beloved Little House on the Prairie author Laura Ingalls Wilder-a fantastic realm of fiction, history, and places she’s never been to, yet somehow knows by heart. She retraces the pioneer journey of the Ingalls family-
My Thoughts:
This is a memoir that gets to the heart of Gen-X girls who wanted to be Laura. McClure goes on a mission to visit all of the Little House related landmarks, and to live the pioneer life style (she concedes that she’s driving a car and has access to wifi). Along the way she talks about what makes the stories so appealing while still addressing the controversies that surround the books. It’s a journey of self-discovery filled with humor and heart.
I joined Lilac City Rochester Writers in fall of 2020. The first event (over zoom since it was the height of the pandemic) was a critique. One of the pieces we reviewed was a chapter from Rick Ieckel’s book about the history of the Rochester airport. Today I got to attend the book launch. It was exciting to be a part of the event. I was able to get an early copy a couple of weeks ago and highly recommend the book to any in the Rochester, NY area or those interested in aviation history.
Rick Iekel worked at the Rochester, NY airport for 28 years, eventually serving as the director. So, he is the perfect person to tell its story. While it is very well researched and gives lots of information about the history of the airport and aviation in general, what sets it apart from other local history books is Iekel’s personal connection to the content. The story is told in a conversational voice that mixes factual information with behind-the-scenes stories. While the book is of most interest to people with a connection to Rochester, NY, it would appeal to anyone interesting in aviation history.
My favorite read for August of 2021 is Prairie Fires: The American Dreams of Laura Ingalls Wilder, a biography of the author written by Caroline Fraser in 2018. Since I have read so much about Wilder, I picked this up out of obligatory devotion to my idol, rather than to get information. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I learned. While this is a biography of Wilder, it’s more than that. It’s the story of an entire generation of pioneers that shaped our country. Not only did I learn information about the Ingalls and Wilder families; I learned a great deal about the lives of all western pioneers. Historical biographies can be tough reads. Sometimes authors are so caught up in the factual information that the biographies read more like a professional journal than a narrative. However, Fraser interweaves the history of American Frontier and Wilder’s life in an engaging manner which kept turning the page. The book shows deep respect for Wilder, while also presenting her as a real person who has flaws.
My Tribute to Laura Ingalls Wilder
Aside from people I’ve actually met, Wilder is arguably the greatest influence in my life. She’s the writer I credit with making me a lifelong reader. That being said, I completely understand why she has come under criticism in recent years. Even as a little girl growing up in the 1980’s, I could see the racial insensitivity of her books. In addition, it’s now been proven that, despite her insistence that the books were true, certain parts simply could not have happened the way she wrote them. Then there’s the debate over how much of the novels were actually written by Rose Wilder Lane. There are many cracks in my idols image, but I accept them while still appreciating her contributions to the world. Reading Prairie Fires made me look closer at what those accomplishments were.
Little House in the Big Woods was first published in 1932. As a child, that date wouldn’t have met much to me, other than it was a long time ago. But, what I now realize is that, in the middle of The Great Depression, she became a successful children’s author. People were struggling to put food on the table, and still chose to buy her books. Those books took an otherwise nonconsequential family and made them as familiar as the world leaders, inventors and celebrities of the same time period.
I still remember exactly where I was sitting the day my American History professor pointed out that Charles Ingalls was a failure. It wasn’t so much that he was a failure that hit me, as the fact that I hadn’t seen it. His crops failed year after year, he kept moving his family from place to place and never seemed to quite make ends meet. I knew this, but somehow it never occurred to me that he never really did get ahead. He was Laura’s hero, and therefore mine. Charles Ingalls and Almanzo Wilder worked hard their entire lives, with minimal return. (This is no fault of their own, Prairie Fires clearly explains that the farmers were doomed to fail).They were both good people, who treated their wives and daughters with respect rarely given to women in their time. They deserve to be heroes. But, chances are not one person living today would know either name if Laura hadn’t become a writer. The Ingalls and Wilder families are the faces for every forgotten pioneer who devoted their lives to God, the land and their families. Laura Ingalls Wilder gave her beloved family immortality. That is the power of books.
If you liked this book I also recommend:
The Selected Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder Edited by William Anderson
The Wilder Life: My Adventures in the Lost World of Little House on the Prairie by Wendy McClure
