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Rating: 
Summary: AN AFFECTING MEMOIR
Review:
Some would like to quantify Kate Lardner's considerable authorial skills as being genetic, passed down through blood and ink from her famous dad, Ring Lardner, Jr.. Not so. Kate's real father was killed when she was a small child. Several years later her mother married Ring Lardner. Let's give this lady credit where credit is due - she has penned a wry, sad, funny memoir all on her own.
Granted, she did grow up in an artistic Hollywood household during the McCarthy era, a time when actors and authors were hauled before the House Un-American Activities Committee and asked not only about their membership in Hollywood's Communist Party but that of their friends.
Ring Lardner's response to these queries is oft quoted: "I could answer....but if I did, I would hate myself in the morning." For this, Lardner was sent to prison. After his release he found himself blacklisted and was unable to find work.
Of the letters her stepfather wrote from prison, Kate said, "My dad gave me the letters when I began interviewing him. I never expected to use them to the extent that I did. But I read them over and over and I wanted the reader to have the experience I had reading them. The waiting. The hope of parole. The visit."
"Shut Up He Explained" (a title taken from a short book penned by her grandfather, Ring Lardner, Sr.) is the affecting story of a childhood spent in the shadow of Blacklisting. Of the alcoholism that has plagued her family Kate said it was and is a disease of "isolation and low self-esteem." She felt very much set apart due to the Blacklist.
Yet, she never felt shame but rather saw her step-father's action as heroic. Still, it was this event that ordained the family's future and shaped the childhood of a small girl.
Far from a bleak memoir, this series of remembrances is often high spirited. After all, the author grew up among a remarkably talented group of people who knew how to sometimes make the best of times out of the worst of times.
Read it and hope that such a devastating event never takes place again, and marvel at a family's resilience.
- Gail Cooke
Rating: 
Summary: Who is getting the royalties???
Review: I admit that I typically do not read books along the lines of "memoirs" and "autobiographies". But the subject matter was intriquing, the descriptions were fabulous, heck -- the reviews were great! So, I was sold! I ordered the book -- two days later I received it, another two days later I was done with it, and two days after that I'm still mad that I read it!!!
My big question is -- who is making the money off of this book? The first half of the book is pretty much letters between the author's mom and dad. And somehow, I think, we the readers are supposed to catch a glimpse of the author's life through these. Well, it failed. I learned nothing about how hard it was to be a blacklisted kid from the parents discussing (in beautiful prose) the details of parole. But i had hope for the second half of the book -- it looked like the author wrote this part.
To my dismay, the story did not improve. Aside from the cloud "blacklisted" being over her growing up years, this story could have been ANY kids story! Of course we all have first loves. Of course we all started drinking. Of course high school was hard and we all tried to find a way to make the pain go away. That's what high school is -- experimental!!! And, I'm sorry the first marriage didn't work out -- is there anyone who isn't aware of the divorce statistic these days?
At the end of it all, after reading about all of the writing the author did in school, I'm hoping this isn't the best she's got.
Rating:
Summary: AN AFFECTING MEMOIR
Review: Some would like to quantify Kate Lardner's considerable authorial skills as being genetic, passed down through blood and ink from her famous dad, Ring Lardner, Jr.. Not so. Kate's real father was killed when she was a small child. Several years later her mother married Ring Lardner. Let's give this lady credit where credit is due - she has penned a wry, sad, funny memoir all on her own.Granted, she did grow up in an artistic Hollywood household during the McCarthy era, a time when actors and authors were hauled before the House Un-American Activities Committee and asked not only about their membership in Hollywood's Communist Party but that of their friends. Ring Lardner's response to these queries is oft quoted: "I could answer....but if I did, I would hate myself in the morning." For this, Lardner was sent to prison. After his release he found himself blacklisted and was unable to find work. Of the letters her stepfather wrote from prison, Kate said, "My dad gave me the letters when I began interviewing him. I never expected to use them to the extent that I did. But I read them over and over and I wanted the reader to have the experience I had reading them. The waiting. The hope of parole. The visit." "Shut Up He Explained" (a title taken from a short book penned by her grandfather, Ring Lardner, Sr.) is the affecting story of a childhood spent in the shadow of Blacklisting. Of the alcoholism that has plagued her family Kate said it was and is a disease of "isolation and low self-esteem." She felt very much set apart due to the Blacklist. Yet, she never felt shame but rather saw her step-father's action as heroic. Still, it was this event that ordained the family's future and shaped the childhood of a small girl. Far from a bleak memoir, this series of remembrances is often high spirited. After all, the author grew up among a remarkably talented group of people who knew how to sometimes make the best of times out of the worst of times. Read it and hope that such a devastating event never takes place again, and marvel at a family's resilience. - Gail Cooke
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